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May 17, 2023NEW MOTOR VEHICLE SALES, MARCH 2023 Year-to-date (January-March 2023 vs January-March 2022, unadjusted)
In the first three months of 2023, Nova Scotia's new motor vehicle unit sales increased 2.7% when compared to the same period in 2022. The 8,471 new motor vehicles sold had a sales value of $418.2 million up 17.1% from January-March 2022.
National new motor vehicles unit sales increased 4.2%. Canada's 364,117 new motor vehicles sold in January-March 2023 represent a sales value of $20,209.0 billion, up 16.6% from January-March 2022.
Unit sales were up in all provinces with the exception of Prince Edward Island, Quebec and Saskatchewan. Ontario posted the largest increase in unit sales.
Sales values were up in all provinces in the first three months of 2023. The largest increase was in Ontario and the smallest gain were in British Columbia and Quebec.
Year-to-date gain in unit sales and in sales values was driven by gains in trucks/SUVs and for North American manufacturers. Unit sales for passenger cars and for overseas manufacturers were down in January-March from a year ago. Sales values were up for passenger cars and trucks/SUVs as well as for both North American and overseas manufacturers.
Trucks and SUVs make up the bulk of the market in Nova Scotia. In March 2023, trucks/SUVs accounted for 82.9% of vehicles sold in Nova Scotia and 82.0% of sales values.
North American manufacturers accounted for 71.7% of unit sales and 75.6% of sales values in Nova Scotia in March2023.
Year-over-year (March 2023 vs March 2022, unadjusted)
Compared with March 2022, Nova Scotia unit sales of new vehicles were up 6.0%. National unit sales were up 2.7% with gains in six provinces. Newfoundland and Labrador recorded the largest gain while Manitoba posted the largest decline in unit sales compared to a year ago.
The sales values of new vehicles increased 21.6% in Nova Scotia from March 2022 to March 2023. National sales values were up 13.8% with gains in all provinces. Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia recorded the largest gains while Manitoba posted the lowest gain.
December, January, and February are typically slower months for unit sales and sales values of cars. But March is typically the beginning of the annual sales surge. Nova Scotia's unit sales were on par with March 2022 but lower than levels typically reported in this month in prior years.
Nova Scotia sales values were up from March 2022 and higher than reported for this month in most prior years (except 2021).
Across Canada, national unit sales were up compared the same month in the previous year but were below levels from the same month in the years prior to the pandemic.
National sales values for March 2023 were higher than the same time in previous years.
Average Prices
The average sale price of a new motor vehicle in Nova Scotia was up 14.0% in the first three months of 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022. National average prices were up 11.8% with increases in all provinces led by Prince Edward Island.
The average unit price of a new motor vehicle in Nova Scotia was $49,369 in the first three months of 2023. This was the second lowest among provinces (ahead of Newfoundland and Labrador). The national average unit price for a new motor vehicle was $55,501 with the highest value in Alberta.
In January-March 2023, average prices were notably higher for trucks/SUVs than for passenger cars. Average prices were also higher for North American manufacturers than for overseas manufacturers. For Nova Scotia note the unusual spike in average unit price for passenger cars in March 2023. This is related in part to the doubling of passenger car sales values in March 2023.
Source: Statistics Canada. Table 20-10-0001-01 New motor vehicle sales
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