If you’ve taken older cars on trade and don’t want to retail them, the current wholesale market looks like fertile ground for those units.
While highlighting the overall wholesale market generated a 0.17% price increase last week, Black Book pointed out values for 8-to 16-year-old cars rose 0.14%.
Furthermore, the newest installment of Market Insights showed midsize cars 8 to 16 years old generated an even higher value gain of 0.44%.
“Signs of recovery in the wholesale market are emerging in mid-March, marked by a solid auction conversion rate and encouraging trends in both car and truck segments. A modest dip in auction inventory and a surge in buyer activity suggest a positive shift in market dynamics as we mark the official start of spring,” Black Book said in the report released on Tuesday, which was the first day of spring on the calendar.
“As we reach mid-March, there are indications of positivity in the wholesale market, evidenced by a steady auction conversion rate of 57%,” analysts continued. “Positive movements are being witnessed in both the car and truck segments, which shows that these changes are not specific to certain vehicles, but instead the market as a whole.”
Looking closer at just cars, Black Book determined overall values on a volume-weighted basis edged up 0.02%, fueled in part by the midsize car segment that rose by 0.35%.
Not all car segments marched higher, however, as Black Book watched prices for prestige luxury cars tumble by 0.68% last week to nearly double the depreciation recorded a week earlier.
Analysts also noticed that prices for sporty cars 2 to 8 years old experienced a value decrease of 0.16%.
And overall car values for units up to 2 years old softened by 0.12%, according to Black Book tracking.
Moving on to trucks, Black Book said overall truck values on a volume-weighted basis increased 0.24% last week, reversing course from a dip of 0.02% a week earlier.
And while values for full-size trucks rose just 0.06%, analysts pointed out it was the first time that segment moved higher in 40 weeks.
“This is a noteworthy change from the sharp depreciation experienced last November when values declined over 2% in just one week,” Black Book said.
All told, 10 of the 13 truck segments posted price increases in Black Book’s analysis, led by minivans that rose by 0.59%.
Also making value gains were subcompact crossovers (up 0.55%), subcompact luxury crossovers (up 0.48%) and midsize and full-size crossovers/SUVs (both up 0.42%).
“There has been a slight reduction in auction inventory levels, hinting at a change in the supply landscape,” analysts said. “The Black Book team has observed heightened buying interest, through both physical and digital channels, over the past several weeks, a trend that aligns with increased vehicle sales across the country.
“With spring on the horizon, these market signals point towards a potential continuation of this upward momentum,” Black Book continued. “As always, our team of analysts are focused on keeping their eyes on the market, watching for developing trends, and gathering insights.”