At the end of 2009 the Canadian automotive industry started to recover and in 2010 it is continuing to expand. Sales of German vehicles are experiencing the strongest growth. In view of the market upturn in North America the automotive industry is starting to invest.
As the Canadian automotive market recovers, sales are expected to increase by around five percent over the figure for last year. In 2009 total vehicle sales was around 10.7 percent less than the previous year. In the first three months of 2010 growth was considerable, at 6.2 percent in January, 25 percent in February and 14 percent in March.
Also in Canada there is a trend towards fuel-efficient and low-emission vehicles. In April the US government and the Canadian government introduced a requirement for it’s the manufacturers to improve the fuel-efficiency of their vehicles. Lower fuel-consumption and emission can also be achieved with diesel and hybrid vehicles. There are also new models in the market in this segment, including from German manufacturers. Representatives of this branch emphasised, that if a consumer has the choice between a petrol-driven vehicle and a diesel vehicle he will choose the diesel vehicle with 70 percent of cases.
With the increase in automotive sales, imports of spare parts also grew in 2010. In January there was an increase of about 39,4 percent compared with the months before. Imports from Germany grew in the same dimension.
Most of the imports, 72 percent, came from the USA, followed by Mexico at 9,6 percent, China and Japan and, in fifth place Germany with 1,3 percent.