New car sales accelerate in November

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The streak of higher new vehicle sales continued last month — and at a higher pace than we’ve seen all year.

DesRosiers Automotive Consultants reported sales of more than 138,000 units in November, up 21 per cent from the same time in 2022. That marks the 13th straight month of year-over-year increases and the largest percentage gain seen this year.

“Improving vehicle availability and strong pent-up demand from a million units of ‘lost sales’ continued to overcome high interest rates and worrying recent economic downdrafts,” observed Andrew Kind, the consultancy’s managing partner.

That said, the high gains come compared to a low bar. Monthly sales in November 2023 were behind the pace of November 2019 when more than 143,000 new vehicles were sold.

However, the seasonally adjusted annual rate for the month came in at 1.82 million. A positive sign as that’s the highest number seen since March 2021.

This year has already surpassed last year’s total of 1.49 million units sold with one month to go.

“While 2023 is by no means going to be a record-setting year for the Canadian automotive market, it does represent an important step in recovery,” DesRosiers’ announcement said.