Canadian wholesale prices continue slow decline, while US values begin to increase
Canadian wholesale auto prices continued to slide down last week, falling by an average of almost a quarter percent (down 0.23%). According to Canadian Black Book weekly data, car prices dropped by 0.35%, while trucks and SUVs dropped by 0.11%.
And an increasing number of segments saw prices rise last week in the lanes: four out of the 22 CBB tracks.
The full-size luxury crossover/SUV segment led the pack with a spike of 0.56%, followed by the mid-size crossover/SUV segment, which rose by 0.50%.
The segments with the largest declines were the compact vans (down 1.50%) followed by subcompact cars with a drop of 0.98%.
The average decrease for cars last week was felt across all but nine of the segments. Subcompact cars dropped in value the most out of the car segments (down by 0.98%). Next up were the full-size cars, down by 0.71%, and compact cars, down by 0.69%.
The only segment to show an increase in pricing was the premium sporty cars (up 0.14%).
Trucks were only down an average of 0.11% last week, and the largest depreciation was seen amid the compact van (down 1.50%), full-size pickup (down by 0.74%) and full-size vans segments (down by 0.61%).
Three truck and SUV segments saw an increase in price: Small pickups (up 0.80%), full-size luxury crossover/SUV (up 0.56%) and mid-size crossover/SUVs (up 0.50%).
“The Canadian market continued to decrease, with declines that were close to the prior week,” CBB analysts reported in CBB’s weekly data release. “Supply is building with decreasing demand for vehicles at auction on both sides of the border. Upstream channels continue to tap supply before it can be available to wholesale markets.”
Most segments saw a change in average value of less than $120 this week. Cars continued to depreciate quicker than their larger counterparts.
Conversion rates were stable this past week with most falling between 25-45%.
“Last week we saw more sellers dropping floors, which has been contributing to more lanes with higher sell rates,” COO said.
The average retail listing price for used vehicles was also slightly down week-over-week, as the 14-day moving average stood at $36,600.
For the U.S. wholesale market, CBB said, “Market conditions are reflecting a positive trend and a shift back to traditional patterns in areas such as vehicle valuations, auction attendance, the supply of inventory, and auction conversion rates.”
Wholesale prices rose by 0.13% in the U.S. last week. Last week, all vehicle age groups experienced an uptick in value in the U.S.