LAWRENCEVILLE, Georgia  – Black Book, a division of Hearst that provides industry-leading used vehicle valuation and residual value forecast solutions, released its Used Vehicle Retention Index  for March  2021  (141.2), an 8.9 point (or 6.7%) increase from February (132.3). The Index currently stands 23% above where it was the same time last year, right before a record drop due to the start of the COVID-19 related economic closures. 

Click here to obtain a copy of the latest Index data.

    “Wholesale prices continued to increase each week, with an accelerated rate of increase throughout March,” said Alex Yurchenko,  SVP, Data Science  and Analytics. “Continuous shortages of used and new inventory, coupled with elevated demand driven by the Federal stimulus and an improved labor situation in the last two months, drove wholesale prices to record heights across all segments. This month, most of the car segments led the increases, with the Compact Car segment increasing by 10 points (7.5% increase) and the Mid-Size Car segment increasing by 9 points (6.9%)”   

The Black Book Used Vehicle Retention Index is calculated using Black Book’s published Wholesale Average value on two- to six-year-old used vehicles, as percent of original typically equipped MSRP. It is weighted based on registration volume and adjusted for seasonality, vehicle age, mileage, and condition. The Index offers an accurate, representative, and unbiased view of the strength of today’s used vehicle market values.   To obtain a copy of the latest Black Book Wholesale Value Index, please click here.   

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