GM, Ford Canadian auto sales soar in November rebound

By Allison Lampert MONTREAL (Reuters) - General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co on Thursday reported double-digit rises in Canadian sales for November compared with the same period a year earlier, fueled by strong demand for SUVs and light trucks and two extra selling days. A spokeswoman for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles wrote Thursday evening in an email that the company could not yet make its November figures available for Canada. But analyst Dennis DesRosiers said in a note to clients that the automaker sold 20,674 vehicles during the month, down 1.7 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. Analysts said the November rebound in industry volumes, following a trend of weakening demand over the last three months, keeps Canada on track to set another record this year, with sales rising to around 1.96 million vehicles from a record-breaking 1.90 million units in 2015. "For those claiming that 2016 had run out of steam, November 2016 light vehicle sales showed a different picture altogether as sales increased 10.4 percent year-over-year," DesRosiers wrote Thursday afternoon. Scotiabank economist Carlos Gomes wrote in a note the rebound was driven by a surge in light truck volumes, especially large SUVs and mid-size pickup trucks. Despite November's rebound, Gomes wrote that he expects "Canadian passenger vehicle sales to begin to edge lower in 2017, as manufacturers raise prices due to the recent weakness of the Canadian dollar." GM dealers delivered 28,523 vehicles in November, up 31 percent compared with November 2015, the company said in a statement. GM Canada sales are up 2 percent year-to-date. Ford said it sold 24,472 vehicles in November, up 18 percent compared with the same month a year earlier. Ford reported a 10 percent rise in Canadian auto sales for the first 11 months of 2016, on an annual basis. Automaker Toyota <7203.T> reported 16,492 units sold in Canada last month, up 4.2 percent compared with November 2015. In the United States, hefty consumer discounts during a robust Black Friday weekend helped boost November U.S. auto sales between 4 and 5 percent, which could catapult results this year above a record high in 2015, economists and industry analysts said on Thursday. (Reporting by Allison Lampert; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and James Dalgleish)