Auto sales slow, but still strong

Despite lower numbers last month, Canadian auto sales remain strong when compared to other years.

When looking at numbers in 2017, new vehicles sales are down this year for the sixth straight month after being up in the first two months of 2018.

In August, sales were down 1.6 per cent compared to the same month last year, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants. For all of 2018 as a whole, sales are down slightly at 0.8 per cent compared to 2017.

Still, last month’s sales were the second strongest on record and overall sales at 4.4 per cent higher than 2016.

Passenger car sales continued to drop, down 10.6 per cent, DesRosiers reported. Light trucks were up once again, increasing 2.6 per cent. For the year, sales of passenger cars are down 9.2 per cent, while light trucks are up 3.2 per cent.

DesRosier reported that Genesis has seen a significant sales boom, up 236 per cent in August and almost 170 per cent for the year. Volvo has seen sales increases of 44.6 per cent for August and 43.5 per cent for the year. Ford overtook General Motors for August volume leader, thanks to a 7.1 per cent sales increase last month.

In the United States, with no major weather-related disasters, sales in August this year compared favourably to 2017. Though it wasn’t the jump that many expected, annual sales for 2018 are predicted to hit 16.8 million units, compared to the 16.6 million estimated at the start of the year, according to Reuters.