Americans replacing vehicles lost in Hurricanes Harvey and Irma pushed used-vehicle prices higher in September. In a related move, Manheim has refined its estimates of vehicle losses caused by those hurricanes.

Wholesale used-vehicle prices increased 2.8 percent from August. The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index — which measures wholesale prices adjusted for vehicle mix, mileage and season — rose to a record 134.9, a fifth straight monthly record high and 6.3 percent higher than a year ago.

“Most of the pricing strength can be directly attributed to the recovery following Hurricanes Harvey and Irma,” Jonathan Smoke, chief economist of Cox Automotive, the parent company of Manheim, said in a statement. “Both the replacement demand and reduction in available supply is causing widespread wholesale inventories to tighten.”

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