New car sales in the UK edged up 2.5 per cent year-on-year in July this year, marking the second consecutive year of growth, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Last month, 147,517 new cars were sold in the UK, the best performance in the same period since 2020, when car dealerships reopened after a four-month blockade and car deliveries surged in the UK thanks to the release of backlogged stock.
In July this year, demand for electric cars in the UK market outpaced the overall market. Sales of electric cars in the UK accounted for 42 per cent of the total number of new cars sold during the month; sales of hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) jumped 31.4 per cent year-on-year and accounted for 14.5 per cent of the overall car market; while plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) sales increased by 12.4 per cent year-on-year and accounted for 8.9 per cent of the total new car registrations; and sales of purely electric vehicles (BEVs) rose 18.8 per cent year-on-year and accounted for car 18.5 per cent of total sales.
However, UK car sales growth once again favoured the fleet business, while demand from private individual buyers fell again. Fleet sales were up 13 per cent year-on-year and accounted for 62 per cent of all new car sales in the month, while private car sales continued to decline, down 11.1 per cent year-on-year and accounting for 36.2 per cent of total car deliveries in the month.
The market share of all-electric personal buyers continued to fall in the first seven months of the year, with private cars accounting for just 17.2 per cent, compared to 20.3 per cent in the same period last year; meanwhile, sales of all-electric private cars only edged up by 0.9 per cent; nevertheless, overall, all-electric vehicles accounted for 16.8 per cent of the new car market share.
The transition to electric vehicles needs to be accelerated dramatically, the SMMT said, due to the requirement that every car brand must account for at least 22 per cent of new car registrations each year with zero-emission vehicles.
GlobalData forecasts that UK car sales, which grew 18 per cent year-on-year last year as supply constraints slowed due to the global semiconductor crisis, will increase by around 3 per cent year-on-year this year to 2 million units.
Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, says: “It is testament to the resilience and attractiveness of the UK automotive sector that the new car market has achieved a second consecutive year of growth against a backdrop of economic turmoil.”
However Mike Hawes noted, “Despite generous discounts offered by car manufacturers, weakening private retail demand, particularly for electric vehicles, remains the primary concern. Despite more and more people buying and driving electric cars, we still need to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles or the UK’s climate change targets will be threatened and the ability of carmakers to meet their electric vehicle regulatory targets will be at risk. To achieve the required pace of EV market transformation, car manufacturers need to offer more support to consumers, and with the all-important new car licence month of September just around the corner, action is needed now to set up incentives as well as build the infrastructure.”