UK Car Industry Starts with a Boom in 2016
The United Kingdom new car registrations witnessed a climb of 2.9%
year-on-year in January, 2016 to reach an 11-year highest registration figure
for the month. The country achieved monthly registration of 169,678 units of
cars, which is the highest number of units sold since 2005.
According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), demand
from private owners grew at 8.2% to 73,061 vehicles and that from business
buyers increased at 5.0% to 6,716 units as compared to January, 2015.
Comparatively, the demand from the fleet sector declined slightly by 1.1% to
89,901 units. A similar growth pattern is also witnessed in the demand for
alternative fuel vehicles, which accounted for 3.6% of total registration in
January 2016 and 32.1% growth in the registration as compared to January 2015. According
to Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, the new year has started with a strong
performance and the industry is quite positive for the full year 2016.
The strong consumer demand is supported by the availability of new car
models present in market along with low interest rates and easy finance offers.
Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Qashqai and Opel Corsa were among the top selling models
of passenger cars in the United Kingdom.
According to a recently
published TechSci report, United
Kingdom Tyre Market, Forecast & Opportunity, 2020,
United Kingdom tyre market is anticipated to attain new heights on account
of increasing registration of passenger cars, which would further enhance the
replacement tyre market for passenger cars in the coming years. Replacement
tyre market accounts for around 80% of the country’s tyre market.