The tide may be turning after some challenging years for inventory in the automotive world.
Baris Akyurek, vice president of insights and intelligence for AutoTrader.ca, said vehicle stock has been slowly climbing on the site since August 2022, catching up after massive supply chain disruptions during the pandemic.
“On a year-over-year basis, we are seeing 78 per cent more new vehicles,” he said. “They’re slightly below pre-COVID levels still, but we are almost there.”
In Feb. 2019, Akyurek said there were 175,232 cars were in inventory. Last month, he said there were 168,274 cars.
The story is similar for used cars, he said.
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“Give or take, 50 per cent of the time when a new car is sold, there’s a used car attached to that new car sale — it’s traded,” the VP said. So, when new cars are sold, used car inventory goes up.
The increase in inventory has a pleasant impact on purchaser pockets.
New car prices peaked in Sept. 2023, Akyurek said, when the average price was $67,817. “By the end of February last month, (they were) $66,979,” he said.
When it comes to used cars, he said there has been a 2.1 per cent decline, year over year, with the average price at the end of Feb. this year being $38,451.
To compliment the slight price decrease is a decrease in interest rates.
“The peak was 6.2 per cent in November of last year, and at the end of last month it came down to 5.8 per cent,” Akyurek said.
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