CPO Sales Come in Weaker Than Normal in November

Certified pre-owned (CPO) sales reached 205,863 in November, up 3.8% year over year, with an increase of 7,550 units from November 2022. However, this represents a slight month-over-month decrease, as CPO sales were down by over 1,300 units, or 0.6%.

“Some wind has come out of the sails this quarter compared to sales between April and September,” said Chris Frey, senior manager of Economic and Industry Insights at Cox Automotive. “Still, at no time this year have monthly sales been below 200,000, with the monthly average hovering above 219,000 compared to almost 206,000 in 2022.”

November CPO Sales

Strong December CPO Sales Needed to Hit 2023 Forecast, Luxury Leads the Way

Year-to-date CPO sales have exceeded 2.4 million units, up 7.6%, or over 169,905 units compared to the same period last year. Luxury CPO sales have increased an impressive 11%, while non-luxury CPO sales are up 6.5%.

“Should December sales match or exceed those from December 2021’s 186,748, our forecast will be met,” noted Frey. “As luxury CPO has had a strong year, it looks likely that those holiday sales will help us clear the 2.6 million bar by the new year.”

CPO MONTHLY SALES

When considering brands, Asian brand CPO sales are up close to 12% year to date, while European brands are up less than 6%. Meanwhile, the Detroit Three continue to lag, with only a 2% increase.

CPO continues to outperform the overall used-vehicle market. For comparison, according to Cox Automotive estimates based on vehicle registration data, total used-vehicle sales in November decreased 12.8% from October to 2.6 million units. Estimates based on registration data indicate that the used-vehicle sales pace — both total and retail — in November was flat compared to the market’s pace of one year ago. The seasonally adjusted annual rate, or SAAR, is estimated to have finished at 34.5 million, even with last November’s pace but down from October’s revised 36.6 million level.