CV market buoyant
- Heavy vans up 16 per cent – light vans down 35 per cent
- Light trucks up four per cent
- Heavy trucks down nine per cent
- Truck market – above medium term average
The UK commercial vehicle market is buoyantly above its recent medium term
average. But there are some contrasting trends within the overall market. Importantly,
general enquiry levels and business prospects are very good, in part due to
the recent and highly successful CV Show.
‘The domestic economy is clearly sound and there is a lot of business out
there,’ said Christopher Macgowan, chief executive at the SMMT. ‘But CV makers
tell us getting people to make decisions is not so easy – elections always unsettle
CV investment plans. The Foot and Mouth epidemic may also have contributed to
this nervousness, although that effect is already diminishing.’
In the van and pick up market at the first quarter of 2001, heavy van registrations
are 16 per cent ahead of last year’s record figure. Light trucks at 7.4 to 7.5
tonnes are the biggest sector in the UK truck market, and for the same period
they are four per cent above last year’s record levels.
The market for medium and heavy weight trucks, above 15 tonnes, was down by
around nine per cent at the first quarter of 2001, but this is still well above
the recent medium term average.
Slow demand leaves bus and coach registrations still 20 per cent down on last
year. Low demand for some light vans, between 1.8 and 2.6 tonnes models and
production problems with others helped push registrations in this sector down
some 35 per cent.
