January’s bumper new car sales set to slow over 2014
After ending 2013 on a high, UK new car buying confidence continued into this year, with the number of new cars registered in January rising 7.6 per cent.
According to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) 154,562 were registered in the month. The rise was the 23rd in a row, and followed 2013's overall increase of 10.8 per cent, with registrations reacing a 6-year high of 2.3m.
But the association said that 2014 is set for “more moderate” growth than 2013.
Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight comments:
While January’s growth rate was below the 2013 average increase rate, this was still a very solid performance as car sales were always highly unlikely to sustain the growth rate seen last year.
The auto industry will clearly be hoping that UK economic activity continues at a healthy clip through 2014 and beyond, and that this underpins consumer and business confidence and their willingness to splash out on new cars.
When it came to what’s been attracting recent buyers, fuel efficiency is top of the list – a typical new car is 27 per cent more than a seven-year-old model.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive:
As fuel economy is a major consideration for many motorists, ongoing investment by vehicle manufacturers in innovative, fuel-efficient technology is a key factor in the growing demand for new cars.
Attraction to alternatively-fuelled vehicles has also risen, with registrations up 25 per cent in January. That’s an improved share of volumes of 1.8 per cent.
(SMMT)