UK production down 16 months of last 17
UK car manufacturing output fell four per cent in October, with 134,752 units rolling off production lines.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders found that this was 5,622 fewer models than in October last year. British car production has now fallen in 16 of the last 17 months.
In October 2019, production for the home market declined 10.7% as consumer and business confidence continued to wane, while overseas orders were down 2.6%, a result of soft demand in some key markets. Model changeovers also played a part in the downturn, while in the year to date car production is down 14.4% to 1,123,926 units, with the majority, 80.5%, heading abroad to destinations around the world. These include the EU, US, China and Japan.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: ‘Yet another month of falling car production makes these extremely worrying times for the sector. Our global competitiveness is under threat, and to safeguard it we need to work closely with the next government to ensure frictionless trade, free of tariffs, with regulatory alignment and continued access to talent in the future. This sector is export led, already shipping cars to more than 160 countries, and in a period of unprecedented change a close trading relationship with the EU and preferential trading with all these other markets will be essential to keep automotive in Britain.’
