Hot Hyundai revs up January auto sales

Tony Van Alphen

BUSINESS REPORTER

Hyundai roared while Toyota and Honda sputtered as Canada's auto market showed some sign of recovery last month.

South Korean-based Hyundai provided the biggest boost to overall industry sales, which climbed 6.2 per cent or more than 4,700 vehicles to 81,581 in January from the same month last year.

The results from manufacturers on Tuesday marked the second month that sales improved after a 13-month losing streak during the depths of the recession.

But analysts called the results disappointing because they compare with a weak January 2009 when the market began sliding because of a deepening economic slump.

"If this were to hold, it would be very bad news for the automotive sector in Canada," said industry watcher Dennis DesRosiers, president of DesRosiers Automotive Consultants.

"We expected better numbers."

DesRosiers and Carlos Gomes, an auto specialist at Scotiabank Group, noted the seasonally adjusted annual rate of sales also fell last month from December.

At the same time, DesRosiers added the public shouldn't read too much into the sales for January, which is traditionally a slow month.

Coming off a blockbuster year, Hyundai's sales surged 32.1 per cent to a record 6,084 during the month from the corresponding period in 2009. The company attributed the boost to the Tucson and Sante Fe sport utility vehicles and the Sonata intermediate car.

General Motors of Canada Ltd., Chrysler Canada, Ford Motor Co. of Canada Ltd. and several smaller players also posted increases. However, declines by Toyota Canada and Honda Canada dampened the overall market gains.

Toyota, which is grappling with the biggest recall crisis in its history, said its sales including the Lexus brand fell 10.4 per cent to 9,199. The company temporarily stopped selling eight models including its flagship car, the Corolla, for the last five days of the month to address issues involving a safety recall.

Honda Canada reported its sales, including the Acura luxury brand, tumbled 15.4 per cent to 6,393.

Struggling GM, the country's biggest auto retailer, said sales increased 4.4 per cent to 14,880 with jumps in the Impala, Malibu and Aveo models and five sport utility vehicles. It was the first time in 17 months that GM posted a monthly increase.

Sales at Ford Motor Co. of Canada climbed 5.7 per cent to 11,553 with large increases for the Fusion and Taurus cars and the F-Series trucks.

Ford said that it has posted eight consecutive months of retail sales increases and improved market share for the 15th consecutive month.

Chrysler Canada's sales advanced six per cent to 11,940 in January on the strength of better volumes for the Caravan minivan, Journey crossover and Ram pickup truck.

Nissan Canada said its sales, including the Infiniti luxury brand, jumped 16.8 per cent to 4,975; Volkswagen Canada's volumes rose 23.2 per cent to 2,332 and Kia Canada's deliveries shot up 32.4 per cent to 2,416.

Business at Subaru Canada jumped 45.8 per cent to a record 1,729 vehicles; sales at BMW Group Canada including the Mini brand climbed 24 per cent to 1,198, while Mercedes-Benz Canada including the smart brand shot up 33.5 per cent to a new January high of 1,693 vehicles.

In the U.S., where Canada exports most of its auto production, sales also improved 6 per cent to almost 700,000 vehicles in January.

Sales at GM climbed 14 per cent; Ford, 25 per cent; Nissan, 16 per cent and Hyundai 13 per cent. But volumes at Chrysler dropped 8 per cent; Toyota, 16 per cent and Honda, 5 per cent.

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