Demand for trucks drives up January auto sales

Despite increase overall, passenger car sales drop

Demand for trucks helped automakers boost their January sales 3.4 per cent to 99,051 vehicles, while sales of passenger cars dwindled.

However, Scotiabank analyst Carlos Gomes says the “torrid” pace of growth in pickup truck sales has slowed to a single-digit gain, likely due to softening demand from the oil and gas industry.

Canadians bought 63,881 trucks in January, an 8.2-per-cent increase from a year ago when they bought 59,041 trucks.

Meanwhile, sales of passenger cars slumped 4.2 per cent to 35,170, compared to January 2014 when Canadians snatched up 36,707 cars.

DesRosiers Automotive Consultants said General Motors was the only one of the three big American automakers that outperformed the overall Canadian market, with sales growing 5.3 per cent to 11,577 vehicles.

Truck sales grew by 5.7 per cent to 8,753 from 8,283, while car sales increased by 4.3 per cent to 2,824, from 2,708.

Chrysler Canada sold 18,054 vehicles in January, up 2 per cent from the 17,698 it sold a year ago. While truck sales edged up 8.5 per cent to 16,306 from 15,023, car sales slipped nearly 35 per cent to 1,748, from 2,675.

Ford Canada also saw its car sales shrink while truck sales grew. The automaker sold 1,994 cars in January, down 28.5 per cent from the 2,787 it sold a year ago.

However, truck sales climbed 7.2 per cent to 12,597, from 11,746 previously. In total, Ford sold 14,591 vehicles in January, up slightly from 14,533 a year ago.

Meanwhile, Nissan sold 7,122 vehicles, a 12-per-cent boost from January 2014, when it sold 6,360.

Toyota’s sales grew 7.6 per cent to 10,249, while Honda’s slipped 3.9 per cent to 6,554.

Meanwhile in the U.S., automakers reported double-digit sales increases in January, a sign that car sales didn’t spin out even with a major snowstorm hitting the Northeast.

General Motors led the way with an 18-per-cent gain over last January. Encouraged by low gas prices, buyers snapped up GM’s big SUVs such as the Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon.

Toyota’s sales rose 16 per cent, and the Japanese automaker reported record January sales of its trucks and SUVs. Ford and Nissan each posted 15-per-cent gains. Fiat Chrysler’s sales rose 14 per cent and Honda’s sales were up 12 per cent.

U.S. sales of new vehicles were expected to be strong in January, continuing the brisk pace of the last half of 2014. Kelley Blue Book predicted overall sales will rise13 per cent to1.14 million vehicles, making this the best January in nine years. All automakers except Tesla Motors reported U.S. sales results on Tuesday.

January is typically a slow month for the auto industry. Buyers have less incentive to shop, since automakers offer fewer deals. Bad weather can also keep customers away.

But this January was a big improvement over last year, when the “polar vortex” caused record-setting cold. This year’s Northeast blizzard had no real impact on sales, said Ford’s U.S. sales analyst Erich Merkle.