New van market sees moderate decline
The new van market remained stable in July, rising 1.1% with 24,766 registrations last month, according to figures released today by SMMT.
July marked another positive month for medium sized vans (> 2.0 – 2.5t) with an impressive 41.4% rise. Meanwhile demand for pickups saw a decline for the first time in 16 months, down -9.5%. However, the first seven months of 2017 remain strong for the segment, up 14.8% with nearly 30,000 already registered this year.
Overall year-to-date figures saw a decline of -3.1% on 2016, with 209,692 registrations. However, this follows a long period of significant growth seen in new van registrations and is in line with SMMT forecasts for the market this year.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said, ‘Although the market is experiencing a moderate decline, the volumes of new vans being registered in the UK are still at incredibly high levels and in line with our expectations for 2017. While it is positive to see stable demand in July, as this follows a period of significant growth we anticipate that the market will continue to moderate, reaching more sustainable levels over the next months.’
