August Used Wholesale Vehicle Prices Perform Well, New Vehicle Sales Follow Suit

Used vehicle price index rose during August

MCLEAN, VA -- Sept. 14, 2015: In their most recent Guidelines report, analysts from the Used Car Guide division of J.D. Power and Associates observed August used vehicle depreciation fell by 1.9 percent, followed by a 0.6 percent new vehicle sales drop when compared to July. The wholesale price decline is an improvement over July, as prices dropped 2.2 percent the previous month. Even though new vehicle sales saw a decline during August, the seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR) managed to climb up to 17.22 million.

According to Jonathan Banks, executive analyst at the Used Car Guide division of J.D. Power, "To give you an idea of what the market holds the remainder of 2015, we're at the time of the year where wholesale used vehicle sales begin to slow. Spring and summer historically see a rise in sales as there are several sales-focused holiday weekends, along with a rush of college age drivers in need of reliable transportation before heading to school in the fall."

Mr. Banks' colleague, Laurence Dixon, senior manager of market intelligence, added, "Even though used vehicle sales are seasonally slowing, we saw our used vehicle price index inch up during August. At 123.1 points, the index rose 0.3 percent over July. It's not a huge percent, but it adds evidence about how strong our economy is performing at the moment, and that consumer confidence is continuing to improve."

The new vehicle SAAR climb to 17.22 million this past month can be somewhat attributed to strategic incentive spending according to the monthly report. For the fifth straight month, average spending per vehicle rose 3.3 percent over August of 2014. In real world money, manufacturers spent $3,102 on average.