The Canadian Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index has been holding strong in April — up nearly 2 points from a year earlier to reach 105.2, representing a 1.7 per cent increase year-over-year.
“Prices have not been this strong in the over 14 years of market performance that the index tracks,” said CBB.
Of note for the month of April is the compact car category, which increased 1.5 points from March 2019, and more than 5 points YOY.
The subcompact car segment also revealed significant gains with a near 8-point increase from a year ago, and 1.6 points from the previous month.
“Rising gas prices nationally may explain some of the appeal of these smaller and more fuel efficient vehicles,” said CBB. “Midsize cars are apparently still in favour with many consumers, and have risen by 4.2 percentage points since last year.”
Prestige luxury cars and luxury cars experienced noteworthy losses of 5.2 and 3.3 respectively. They represent two of the biggest decliners in April.
Minivans and small pickup trucks are also among the categories that experienced a decline, dropping approximately one per cent each.
See the full index here.
