Used Fleet Vehicles Fall 0.6% in October

The values of vehicles sold at ADESA auctions from fleet consignors (commercial fleet / corporate portfolios) fell 0.6% to $13,309 in October but remain 2.4% higher from a year ago, according to Tom Kontos, KAR Global's chief economist.

Kontos has also revised September's average price, which came in at $13,386 and was more than 1.6% lower than August.

The overall wholesale market was flat in October, as prices averaged $11,141, which was 0.1% lower than September but 0.7% above October 2018.

"Car prices fell on a monthly and annual basis, while truck-segment prices faired more favorably," Kontos wrote. "Off-lease units showed signs of price softness. On the other hand, October CPO sales were strong, which is supportive of off-lease demand."

Midsize cars and midsize SUVs, which are used as an indicator of the fleet market because of their popularity, fell 0.7% (to $11,698) and 0.2% (to $19,723) respectively.

Other consignors saw similar to worse results. Vehicles from automotive manufacturers were 0.5% lower and up 2.5% from a year ago. Dealer consigned vehicles were down 3.5% and down 2.8% from a year ago.