New car registrations in the UK rose slightly year-on-year in September, but car industry bosses have warned that ongoing political uncertainty over Brexit is stunting market growth. A total of 343,255 new cars were registered last month, a modest rise of 4421 units, or 1.3%, from September 2018, according to Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) figures. The rise had been expected, because registrations that month were badly hit by delays in car production due to the introduction of the new WLTP emissions testing regulations, falling 20.5%. But the year-on-year increase in the UK last month was significantly smaller than in other European Union (EU) countries that were also affected by the new test rules, and the domestic market continues to struggle. In the first nine months of 2019, a total of 1,862,271 cars have been registered here, a year-on-year decline of 2.5%. SMMT boss Mike Hawes attributed the continued struggles to ongoing political uncertainty, saying: “We expected to see a more significant increase in September, similar to those seen in France, Germany, Italy and Spain, given the negative effect WLTP had on all European markets last year. “Instead, consumer confidence is being undermined by political and economic uncertainty. We need to restore stability to the market, which means avoiding a ‘no deal’ Brexit and, moreover, agreeing a future relationship with the EU that avoids tariffs and barriers that could increase prices and reduce buyer choice.” The September new car registration figures did show some positive trends, however. Sales of electric cars continued to rise, with the 7704 registered a 236.4% year-on-year increase. Plug-in hybrid sales also rose year-on-year for the first time in six months, with the 5179 units registered up 1.5% from September 2018., Notably, the outgoing Vauxhall Corsa was the best-selling car in the UK last month, with 12,921 examples registered. The perennially popular Ford Fiesta was second in the sales chart, with 11,643 sold, and remains the best-selling car of 2019 so far, with a total of 64,564 registrations. The Corsa is second in the yearly charts, with a total of 47,547 registrations. The Mercedes-Benz A-Class was the third most popular car in September, ahead of the Mini hatchback, Nissan Qashqai and Ford Focus. The Tesla Model 3 was the third best-selling car in the UK in August but didn’t feature in September’s top
Origin: UK car market posts marginal growth in September
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Volvo’s SUV growth drives record sales
Volvo has recorded record sales in the first half of 2019, with the success of its SUV range helping the firm sell 340,286 cars – including strong growth in the UK market. The Swedish firm’s global sales between January and June were up 7.3 per cent on 2018, despite the struggles of the global car market. The growth has been driven by Volvo’s SUV range, which accounted for 60.7% of its total sales. Volvo sold 30,026 sales in the UK in the first six months of the year, a year-on-year increase of 30 per cent. The firm also reported growth of 32 per cent in Germany and 10.2 per cent in China, despite the European and Chinese car markets continuing to decline. Volvo boss Hakan Samuelsson said the results showed the firm was now “a real premium alternative” as a brand. Those strong sales helped Volvo achieve record revenues of 130.1 billion SEK (£11 billion), a 5.9 per cent year-on-year increase. The firm’s operating profit was down, due to a series of cost-cutting measures and investment in research. The XC60 SUV was Volvo’s best-selling model in the first half of 2019, with 50,946 sales. That was 0.1 per cent down year-on-year, largely due to a fall in sales in Sweden. Volvo also sold 32,961 examples of the new XC40 small SUV, up 88.3 per cent on
Origin: Volvo’s SUV growth drives record sales
EV sales growth bucks UK new car market trend
EV sales growth bucks UK new car market trend Pure electric models increased against an overall market drop Pure-electric car registrations are bucking the current UK market trend, with continued growth in May 2019 seeing almost 2,000 units sold, an increase of 81% compared to last year. That’s against a backdrop where the total UK new car market dropped 4.6% compared to last year. Although pure-EVs are showing sustained growth – the last dip in sales compared to the previous year happened in March 2018 – PHEV registrations have dipped for the third month on the trot. More than 2,300 PHEVs were registered in May 2019, a drop of 41% compared to 2018’s figure, which sees a combined UK plug-in car total – EV & PHEV – of 4,352 units registered during the month. Despite current strength in pure-electric market growth, the sector still only made up 1.1% of total UK new car registrations last month, and PHEVs accounted for just 1.3%. The combined plug-in car market share for May 2019 is 2.4%, while the current share for 2019 is 2.1% and the 12-month rolling share is 2.6%. The continued growth for pure-EVs and drop in PHEV registrations sees the market split balance out, with the past three months seeing a share of around 45:55 for pure-EVs compared to PHEVs. For a long time, the total market split has been around a ratio of 35:65, and by the end of last year, the split was as great as almost 25:75. There is discussion as to what is affecting the UK plug-in car market most, with the effective removal of the Plug-in Car Grant for PHEVs no doubt a factor in the dip in sales performance. Likely to be far more significant though is likely to be supply issues from manufacturers for new plug-in cars. A number of popular models – both pure-EV and PHEV – have long waiting lists, and even suspended order books. Table courtesy of SMMT There doesn’t seem to be a lack of demand from buyers, but there is certainly a lack of supply. With new EVs due in the second half of 2019 and early 2020, it is hoped that increased choice will help mitigate any supply issues for what remains an important electric vehicle market in Europe. The backdrop for the electric vehicle market is the UK new car market as a whole, which sees diesel continue its decline. Sales dropped 18% compared to last year, and the market share is only 28% of total new car registrations in May 2019, down from last year’s 32% – itself a figure that was far lower than the year before’s 45%. Market share for petrol models is now at two-thirds, and alternatively fuelled vehicles – which bundle together the likes of pure-electric, PHEVs, and conventional hybrids – sit at 6% market share, with growth of 14% compared to last year.
Origin: EV sales growth bucks UK new car market trend
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