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January 12, 2018

Used car prices rose by 1.4 percent in December and new car prices rose by 0.6 percent. The summer hurricanes are likely a major part of this story. Hundreds of thousands of cars were destroyed, mostly by flooding in the Houston area. As a result, used car prices have risen for three consecutive months after declining for the first nine months of the year. Higher used car prices also have led to higher new car prices. However, even with the recent rise, used and new car prices are still down by 1.0 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively over the last year. Car insurance also continues to far outpace the overall CPI, rising by 0.6 percent in December and 7.9 percent over the last year. For more, check out the latest Prices Byte.

New and Used Vehicle Prices, 2008 to 2018 1