Friday, October 13, 2006

New motor vehicle sales

Continued demand for trucks drove new motor vehicles 2.8% higher in August, extending the rebound that began in July. However, this rebound looks set to soften as preliminary sales data from the auto industry indicate the number of new motor vehicles sold in September is estimated to have slipped about 4%, due to a fallback in truck sales.

Consumers purchased 144,394 new vehicles in August, 3,882 more than in July. August volumes were the highest since July 2005 and the second highest on record. The all-time peak was reached in August 2002 when 145,562 vehicles were sold.

Quebec was responsible for over half of the national increase in August.

Truck sales accounted for 80% of the overall increase in new motor vehicle sales in August. Dealer incentives geared toward larger vehicles may have contributed to consumer preference for trucks in August. According to the Consumer Price Index, the price paid for all new vehicles (both cars and trucks) edged down 0.8% in August.

New motor vehicle sales have been trending upwards recently, following a relatively flat period during the first half of 2006. In 2005, sales had been extremely volatile with the introduction and subsequent removal of dealer incentive programs such as "employee pricing."

Truck sales show continued strength

Truck sales (which include minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses) posted a second consecutive increase in August, rising 4.6% to 71,144 vehicles. Excluding the record peak in July 2005, truck sales have never been higher.

Note to readers All data in this release are seasonally adjusted. Passenger cars include those used for personal and commercial purposes, such as taxis or rental cars. Trucks include minivans, sport-utility vehicles, light and heavy trucks, vans and buses. North American built new motor vehicles include vehicles manufactured or assembled in Canada, the United States or Mexico. All other new motor vehicles are considered to have been manufactured overseas. For reasons of confidentiality, data for Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut are included with those for British Columbia. The New Motor Vehicle Sales Survey is compiled on the basis of figures obtained from motor vehicle manufacturers and importers. These results may vary from those obtained directly from auto dealers, due to possible differences in record keeping.

Passenger car sales edged up 1.1%, offsetting the 1.1% slip in July. This latest advance was attributed to a 6.3% increase in the sales of North American built cars, which more than erased July's 4.5% drop and saw the largest month-over-month gain since June 2005. North American built car sales accounted for 66.3% of all passenger cars sold in August. Overseas built passenger car sales fell 7.9% in August, ending a streak of six consecutive monthly increases.

Car and truck sales have been on an upward trend since May 2006, with trucks showing a somewhat steeper incline than passenger cars. This upward trend follows a period of relatively flat sales since the fourth quarter of 2005.

Over half the increase occurs in Quebec

New motor vehicle sales increased in eight provinces in August, with Nova Scotia (+8.2%) and Quebec (+6.1%) experiencing the strongest gains. Quebec new motor vehicle sales reached 35,762 units in August, up 2,052 vehicles compared with July. Quebec sales represented slightly more than half (52.9%) of the national increase in August, despite representing only one quarter of the Canadian automotive market. This sales level was also Quebec's highest since the peak reached in July 2005.

New motor vehicle sales in Alberta increased 2.4% to 22,204 vehicles, the highest sales level ever recorded for the province.

Prince Edward Island (+3.6%), British Columbia (+2.8%), Ontario (+1.0%), and New Brunswick (+0.7%) all posted second consecutive monthly increases and the highest sales of the year.

Manitoba and Saskatchewan were the only provinces that posted lower sales in August. Sales in Manitoba fell 2.0% after two consecutive monthly increases, while Saskatchewan sales were relatively flat (-0.1%).

Available on CANSIM: tables 079-0001 and 079-0002.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 2402.

The August 2006 issue of New Motor Vehicle Sales (63-007-XIE, free) will be available soon.

Data on new motor vehicle sales for September will be released on November 15.

For general information or to order data, contact Client Services (toll-free 1-877-421-3067; 613-951-3549; retailinfo@statcan.ca). To enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, contact Ashley Ker (613-951-2252), Distributive Trades Division.

New motor vehicle sales
	August 2005	July 2006r	August 2006p	August 2005 to August 2006	July to August 2006
	Seasonally adjusted
	number of vehicles			% change
New motor vehicles	137,690	140,512	144,394	4.9	2.8
Passenger cars	71,973	72,481	73,250	1.8	1.1
North American1	48,935	45,706	48,585	-0.7	6.3
Overseas	23,039	26,775	24,666	7.1	-7.9
Trucks, vans and buses	65,717	68,031	71,144	8.3	4.6
New motor vehicles
Newfoundland and Labrador	1,788	1,963	2,020	13.0	2.9
Prince Edward Island	430	422	437	1.6	3.6
Nova Scotia	4,068	3,809	4,121	1.3	8.2
New Brunswick	2,958	2,964	2,986	0.9	0.7
Quebec	33,149	33,710	35,762	7.9	6.1
Ontario	51,532	52,435	52,962	2.8	1.0
Manitoba	3,994	3,858	3,782	-5.3	-2.0
Saskatchewan	3,362	3,404	3,400	1.1	-0.1
Alberta	19,394	21,690	22,204	14.5	2.4
British Columbia2	17,015	16,258	16,720	-1.7	2.8
	August 2005	July 2006r	August 2006p	August 2005 to August 2006
	Unadjusted
	number of vehicles			% change
New motor vehicles	146,862	145,521	157,868	7.5
Passenger cars	78,942	76,556	82,244	4.2
North American1	53,093	48,349	53,812	1.4
Overseas	25,849	28,207	28,432	10.0
Trucks, vans and buses	67,920	68,965	75,624	11.3
New motor vehicles
Newfoundland and Labrador	2,153	2,244	2,482	15.3
Prince Edward Island	504	519	531	5.4
Nova Scotia	4,345	3,998	4,597	5.8
New Brunswick	3,242	3,149	3,389	4.5
Quebec	36,084	36,605	40,566	12.4
Ontario	55,081	53,323	56,732	3.0
Manitoba	4,685	4,092	4,471	-4.6
Saskatchewan	3,873	3,540	3,963	2.3
Alberta	19,742	21,075	23,266	17.9
British Columbia2	17,153	16,976	17,871	4.2
r revised p preliminary 1. Manufactured or assembled in Canada, the United States or Mexico. 2. Includes Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

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