The EU passenger car market returned to growth in April 2018 after demand declined in March. According to figures released by the European Automobile Manufacturers Association, a total of 1,206,273 passenger cars were registered last month, a year-on-year growth of 9.6 per cent. Growth in the UK market exceeded the European average, rising 10.4 per cent year-on-year to 167,911 new registrations.
In 2017 trailer registrations reached over 190,000 in Western Europe which is the third highest level of demand ever recorded – surpassed only in 2007 and 2008, just before the 2009 crash caused by the global financial crisis (GFC), according to the latest data from Clear International.
“It is positive to see that demand for new cars in Europe grew by +3.4 per cent in 2017 and reached a 10-year high of 15.6 million units sold”, said Sue Robinson, Director of the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers in the UK, commenting on the latest figures by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).
The Motor Cycle Industry Association has released sales figures for December and the year. Commenting on the figures, Stephen Latham, Head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) which represents motorcycle retailers across the UK, said:
In October 2017, European Union demand for passenger cars returned to growth after a decline in September. Registrations of new cars totalled 1,169,672 units, or 5.9 per cent higher than in October last year, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has said.
Motorcycle registrations in August fell by –17.8 per cent compared to the same period last year, with the total number of bikes being sold down to 6,856 units. “Demand for motorcycles continued its downward trend in August – marking eight consecutive months of decline in the market”, said Stephen Latham, head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA).
Registrations of new buses and coaches fell -15.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2017, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). A total of 2,105 units were registered in the period, with demand falling for the second time this year following five consecutive quarterly rises in registrations. This decline also follows a particularly strong Q2 2016, when the market grew by 26.9 per cent on the previous year.
The latest SMMT registrations data shows that the new HGV (heavy goods vehicle) market in the UK saw strong growth in the second quarter of 2017, according to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 11,771 new trucks were registered – a 6.3 per cent rise on the same period last year as manufacturers delivered several large orders to fleets in quarter two.
Exports of British-built vans, trucks and buses rose 11.6 per cent in the first six months of 2017, with almost all headed to the EU, according to figures released today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Nearly two-thirds (63.5 per cent) of commercial vehicles (CVs) built in Britain were exported, with 27,818 of the 43,782 total produced headed to more than 45 countries around the world.
“Demand for motorcycles continued its downward trend in June – marking 6 consecutive months of decline in the market”, said Stephen Latham, Head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) which represents motorcycle retailers across the UK.
British commercial vehicle (CV) production output fell in May as an increase in production for export failed to counteract a drop in domestic demand, according to figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 6,875 vans, trucks, buses and coaches were built in the UK last month, a -11.3 per cent year on year decline.
Registrations of new light commercial vehicles decreased in April, falling 18.8 per cent to 22,625 units, according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The performance follows a period of rapidly growing levels of demand, with registrations in April 2016 the highest on record.
“Following extremely high numbers of bikes registered in December (10,990) the slowdown seen in January was hugely anticipated. Compared with last year’s strong results, this shows a decline of -15.6 per cent which is, surprisingly, reasonable”, said Stephen Latham, Head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) which represents motorcycle retailers across the UK.
The European car industry boomed in 2016 – with new car registrations for the year totalling 15.14 million units, a 6.5 per cent increase when compared to 2015. This is the second highest volume seen since 2007 when total registrations exceeded 16 million units. In addition, the results also demonstrate that the SUV take-up trend continues to boom. In fact, the switch to SUVs was the clearest car sector trend in 2016. To be precise, the European SUV sector grew 21.4 per cent last year, increasing from 3.2 million units registered in 2015 to 3.9 million last year. In contrast, the traditional segments grew by just 2.2 per cent – 10 times slower!
The UK new car market got 2017 the year off to a good start and achieved record levels of registration again January. According to the latest SMMT figures, 174,564 new cars were registered on British roads in January – rising 2.9 per cent to the highest level since 2005.
