SMMT News

106,265 new cars registered in October, a -24.6% fall on last year and the weakest October since 1991.
Plug-in vehicles now account for 16.6% of all cars registered so far in 2021.
Chip shortages and tax rises mean industry expects to finish year on 1.66m units, or only 1.9% ahead of Covid-hit 2020.

Latest SMMT outlook forecasts that some 287,000 plug-in vehicles will be registered in 2021 – more than from 2010 to 2019 combined.
Battery electric vehicles forecast to outsell conventional diesel and mild-hybrid diesel cars in 2022.
Industry credits acceleration in growth to wide choice of vehicles, growing public acceptance and incentives.

SMMT released figures for September pre-registrations in the UK new car market. The data shows the number of cars disposed of by vehicle manufacturers in September 2021 that were defined as pre-registrations. Download the September 2021 release

UK factories produced 138,059 engines last month, a decline of -36.3%. Output for both domestic and export markets falls by -42.0% and -32.6% respectively. Year-to-date engine manufacturing fell -2.8% to 1,278,117 units compared to 2020 and remains -33.9% below the…

7,799 commercial vehicles produced during September, a modest increase of 1.8% on 2020, but output remains -8.1% below the five-year average for the month. Exports of commercial vehicles fell by -12.4%, but output for the domestic market increased by 27.3%.…

British car production falls -41.5% in September with 67,169 units leaving factory gates.
Global chip shortage continues to plague production costing suppliers more than £2.4 billion.
Better news for battery electric and hybrid car manufacturing as almost a third of all cars made in UK are now electrified, a new record

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said, “The effects of the pandemic continue to hurt businesses across the sector – supply chain disruption, skills shortages and punitive energy costs. The Budget included some significant steps, most notably in adjusting business rates…

The success of the UK’s manufacturing sector will be central to Government’s ability to deliver on its national ambitions to level up the whole country, reach Net Zero by 2050 and become a global science super-power.
Today, five trade associations together representing sectors with nearly 800,000 employees, annual turnover of £338.2bn and £166bn in exports, publish a joint report setting out policy recommendations to maximise the potential of UK manufacturing to generate and sustain high value jobs and growth.

“The automotive industry is putting zero-emission vehicles on Britain’s roads at pace beyond all forecasts”

SMMT Charitable Trust Fund (SCTF) re-launches £100,000 fund to help Covid-hit automotive businesses protect apprenticeship jobs as government’s furlough scheme ends. SMMT Apprentice Support Programme is accepting applications from small and medium automotive firms from across the entire supply chain.…