New light vehicle sales across Canada were once again mixed in September, at least at the provincial level.
That is according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants’ latest update, which noted that the Atlantic region experienced significant success for the month; Newfoundland and P.E.I. were up an estimated 14.6% and 12.3%, respectively.
Ontario and British Columbia were not as lucky, seeing significant sales decreases — of 9.2% and 9.1%, compared to the relatively strong results in September 2023. And Alberta and Saskatchewan were also down, at 2.7% and 1.6%.
Year-to-date, DAC said not a single province experienced sales declines, although results still ranged from lower increases of 5.0% in both British Columbia and Ontario, to a 21.4% increase in Newfoundland.
“With the back half of 2023 providing difficult comparables to overcome, the provincial sales picture across Canada was notably stratified in September,” said Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC, in statement. “The timing of how quickly vehicle availability improved in different regions in 2023 continues to shape provincial percentage changes for this year.”
An estimated total of 157,000 new light vehicles were sold across the country in September, which is a decrease of 3.6% from the same period in 2023. Year-to-date, the overall market managed an 8.1% sales increase over the same time last year.
