Car manufacturing up 7% in July
UK car manufacturing grew 7% in July with production rising to 128,873 units, driven by strong demand in the home market Year-to-date volumes also rose and were up 1.9% on the same period last year to 893,263 units.
Figures by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders show demand across the UK market rose 37.5% for the month in anticipation of September’s new plate change.
There was better news for the engine production sub-sector, with volumes up for than 26%, although the commercial vehicle market still struggled, with volumes down almost 12% year-on-year.
Mike Baunton, SMMT interim chief executive, said: “Car manufacturing is continuing to follow the wider UK trend for more positive economic growth with a 7% rise in July, supporting a 1.9% increase in the year so far.
“We are starting to see slight signs of recovery from Europe which will support stronger production levels this year, and UK manufacturers will continue to build and develop innovative, high-quality products that appeal to a global customer base.”
John Leech, UK head of automotive at KPMG, said hopes were high the situation would improve further in the second half following the bottoming out of the Eurozone recession.
He said registrations on the continent had risen by 4.8% compared with the same month last year.
“Even austerity hit Spain, Portugal and Greece, where sales are roughly half pre-recession levels, showed double-digit gains. With the Eurozone back out of recession, consumer confidence is starting to improve, giving UK car manufacturers confidence that the second half of 2013 will see greater production volumes than the first,” he said.
