While most manufacturers in Canada are improving, Honda struggles in May
As the May sales reports filter in today, they seem to be pretty positive overall. Every press release I’ve received so far have shown improvements, until Honda’s numbers appeared.
The press release reads:
TORONTO, June 1 /CNW/ – Combined May sales of 11,587 units by the Honda and Acura divisions represented a 26% decrease over last year. The Honda Automobile Division reported May sales of 10,084 units, down 28% from last year. The Acura Division reported May sales of 1,503 units, down 5% from last year. The Canadian-built Acura MDX reported record May sales of 509 units.
For May sales, 91% of all Honda and Acura vehicles sold in Canada were built in North America.
Honda Canada Inc. has sold more than 3,300,000 Honda and Acura passenger cars and light-duty trucks in Canada over the past 37 years. A record high 91 per cent of the Honda and Acura vehicles sold in Canada in 2009 were produced at the company’s assembly plants in North America, up nearly 3 per cent from 2008.
While a slight decrease might not be overly worrisome, a decrease of 26% in a rising market is truly a bad sign. On top of that, sales in May 2009 were 17% behind 2008. Given that Honda hasn’t had the PR nightmare that Toyota has had to deal with, Honda’s execs must be wracking their brains trying to find a way out of these doldrums.