May light vehicles sales are 5.7% above last year's levels and 20% above 2022 levels. PHOTO courtesy Stellantis.
For job shops watching Canadian light vehicle sales for clues to the health of the automotive market, May proved an interesting month.
On the one hand, light vehicle sales were a step in the right direction with sales of 169,000 coming in at 5.7% above the levels of May 2023 and 20.0% above the pitiful 141,000 thousand units sold in May 2022 when the semiconductor related vehicle shortages were widespread.
The Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) for May 2024, however, came in at 1.63 million units – the lowest so far in 2024.
“It is somewhat concerning (if not unexpected) that the SAAR appears to be trailing off from the levels hit in January and February, when pent-up demand fuelled the market to lofty heights. However, we have now seen 19 consecutive months of year over year gains, and the market continues to move forward, albeit supported by an increasing range of sub-vented interest rates and other incentives,” said Andrew King, managing partner at Desrosiers Automotive Consultants.
