Year-over-year declines in car sales from the U.S., Canada and China have helped slow down the overall pace of global auto sales growth in July, according to Scotiabank Economist Juan Manuel Herrera.
“So far in 2018, vehicle sales in Canada have declined by 0.9 per cent YOY compared to the first eight months of 2017, which is in line with expectations of a slight decline in sales in 2018 after record levels last year,” said Herrera in his latest Global Auto Report.
His report offers a wide-ranging look at car sales across the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.
Although sales figures in Canada and the U.S. have been considered weak in recent months, vehicle purchases are only slightly below record-high levels, he says. Ontario, for example, showed a slight YOY sales increase in July. But vehicle purchases in Alberta and B.C., which represent over a fifth of the Canadian auto market combined, dipped more than 10 per cent YOY in each province.
In Mexico, car sales declined YOY for a 15th consecutive month in August. The decrease comes as the nation’s industry faces “headwinds of slow growth in real wages and high lending rates,” said Scotiabank.
As for Western Europe, vehicle purchases increased in both July and August as dealers scrambled to clear their lots and ensure all remaining vehicles meet the new EU emissions standards. The Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP) came into effect on September 1, 2018.
Read the full report here.
