UK car volumes decline 22% in August as factories take summer shutdown
CAR production declined more than 22% in the UK during August as many of the major car manufacturers took their annual holiday shutdown.
The figures while initially startling are nothing really significant – August is typically the quietest month of the year in terms of production volumes.
Even taking into account the shutdown, 994,949 cars have been manufactured in the UK so far in 2014 – up 1% on January-August 2013.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said that UK car production was set for a bright future, with significant investments being realised and new models starting assembly.
Nevertheless, export volumes were down considerably, while production for the home market dipped almost 10% compared to August last year.
“The month of August – typically the quietest of the year – saw a 22.1% drop in car production over 2013 as the 2014 calendar meant some key plants took additional shutdown compared to last year,” said Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive.
“Volumes are still strong for the year-to-date, however, with the UK automotive sector in the midst of a renaissance. Global demand for quality UK-built products is at an unprecedented level, with significant investments into UK production facilities from government and industry currently being realised.”
Of the cars that were produced in August 74.2% (2013: 77.8%) of them were bound for export markets. Export volumes were down 25.7% on the same month last year, indicating the declining demand in traditional markets such as Europe.
No one is getting too alarmed at the moment as the industry is still ahead of where it was 12 months ago, but manufacturers will be keen that volumes do not decline further.
The picture was similar for commercial vehicle production, which fell by 1,642 units in August. Some plants were shutdown for longer for re-tooling ahead of new models.
Year-to-date commercial vehicle output is down 24.6% to 45,928 units, but greater stability is expected in the coming months.
More encouragingly, European demand for commercial vehicles is on the up, with EU registrations rising 10.3% in June.
“UK commercial vehicle production fell 43.5% in August – traditionally the year’s quietest month – as some plants took additional shutdown to retool for new models,” said Hawes.
“We expect the recent decline to level off in the next few months as newly introduced models reach full production and the rising demand across the EU takes hold.”
In line with the rest of the industry, August saw engine output fall 21.8% in August to 97,406 units. Production is down 3.8% so far in 2014, although export volumes have grown 4.2%.
The SMMT said growth was expected in coming months as new investments into UK engine production facilities take hold.
Notable in this is the ramp-up to full production volumes at the new Jaguar Land Rover engine plant near Wolverhampton, which is producing engines for the new Jaguar XE. When the plant reaches full capacity a new engine will roll off the production lines every 36 seconds.
