Car supermarkets sourced higher volumes of younger vehicles in November to maximise profitability, according to Motors.
Supermarkets increased their inventories for the second month in a row – averaging 214 units in November, a new high for the year, moving closer to last November’s total of 220.
Lucy Tugby, marketing director of Motors, said: “While November was characterised by small seasonal adjustments across pricing, demand and stock volumes, our Market View analysis did identify a trend among car supermarkets moving to boost profitability by successfully sourcing and selling younger used cars.”
There was a strategic focus on cars aged under two years which grew as a proportion of their stocks YoY from 7% to 12%. Older cars aged four to six years dropped from 38% to 30.5%.
Average prices increased MoM for supermarkets by 1.2% to £17,038, with a slight softening in days to sell from 21.3 to 20.8.
Tugby added: “It’s also significant that consumer demand, as measured by online search activity and days to sell, was not negatively impacted by the Autumn Budget or the Court of Appeal’s ruling on dealers now being required to disclose commission on finance sales.”
The Market View analysis identified MoM stability across prices, retail demand and stock volumes, with minimal YoY fluctuations.
The average price for a used car was £17,961, a rise of £41 MoM and £38 YoY. This contrasts with the pricing volatility of 2023.
