Ontario was the only province to record a year-over-year decline in new light-vehicle sales in June, falling 2.6 per cent and offsetting some of the gains posted elsewhere in Canada, according to DesRosiers Automotive Consultants.
The decline represented nearly 2,000 fewer vehicles sold in the country’s largest provincial market, but stronger results elsewhere were enough to push national sales into positive territory.
Nova Scotia posted the strongest percentage increase, with sales rising 18.9 per cent compared with June 2025. Prince Edward Island followed with a 15.1 per cent gain, while Alberta and Quebec added more significant sales volume at lower growth rates.
Nationally, an estimated 182,000 new light vehicles were sold in June, up 1.9 per cent from approximately 178,000 during the same month last year.
The increase ended a run of monthly declines that began in October 2025, but DAC cautioned that one positive month does not yet indicate a broader market recovery.
“The market across Canada remains stressed, and a single positive month is not enough to declare an eight-month trend over,” said Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC.
“However, a positive sales month is still a welcome sight given the various headwinds that the new light-vehicle sales market faces.”
For the first half of 2026, Canadian sales reached approximately 950,000 units, down 2.6 per cent from the first six months of 2025.
Nova Scotia was the only province to remain in positive territory year to date, with sales edging up 1.9 per cent.
