For the many metalworking and mould making shops serving Canada’s automotive sector, new light vehicle sales for May are disappointing, down 8.5% for Canada as a whole, according to DesRosiers Automotive Reports (DAC).
The impact, however, was not uniform across Canada. Compared to sales levels a year ago, Manitoba, despite a below average year-to-date performance, showed an estimated 7.7% sales increase for the month. Nova Scotia was similar with a 2.4% increase for May, but a 17.6% YTD decline. Alberta, the third largest province in terms of volume, noted fairly stable sales with a minor 0.8% increase.
On the other end of the spectrum, Quebec noted a 21.3% sales decrease for the month, second only to Newfoundland with its sharp 36.2% decrease over May of last year.
“The volatility in provincial sales sprung back up in May with a very wide range of performances seen across Canada,” commented Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC. “Though this was not unexpected given the erratic comparable month of May 2021.”
Overall sales settled at an estimated 140,725 units, falling within a few hundred units of March and April, but well behind the over 202,000 units sold in pre-pandemic May 2019.
