Auto Market Weekly Summary: June 12
Used-vehicle sales volumes were stable in May relative to April, but they were off from the normal seasonal pattern, which is to see growth. Volumes were down 11% year-to-year, the worst performance so far this year. Wholesale used vehicle values fell again in May, and the price declines accelerated as the month progressed.
Consumers continue to tap credit, but credit card usage declined in April. Auto credit access fell again in May across most auto sales channels and across most lender types.
Used-Vehicle Sales Volumes Held Steady in May but Off the Normal Growth Pattern
Used retail sales estimates based on vAuto data indicate that sales volumes were flat in May compared to April, whereas normally, they would have grown. Volumes were down 11% from a year ago, which was a deterioration from April and the worst year-to-year performance so far this year. CPO sales again outperformed and were up 2% from April and up 5% from May a year ago.
As the retail market has slowed this spring, wholesale vehicle value trends turned down, according to the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index. The Index declined 2.7% in May on a seasonally adjusted basis after falling 3.0% in April. The decline in May pushed the Index back down to 224.5, down 7.6% from a year ago. The unadjusted price change in May was a decline of 1.7%, leaving the unadjusted average price down 8.2% from a year ago.
Looking at price trends by week, price declines accelerated as the month progressed. Over the last four weeks, the Three-Year-Old Manheim Market Report (MMR) Index declined an aggregate of 2.6%.