UK car registrations inch closer to pre-pandemic levels in April
The UK new car market showed continued growth in April, marking the ninth successive month of expansion, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Its latest figures showed a rise of 11.6% to reach 132,990 registrations in the month, although the market remained 17.4% below pre-pandemic levels in 2019, when 141,583 units were sold.
Fleet registrations increased 33.1% to 68,537 units, but the number of deliveries to private buyers dropped 5.5% to 61,342 units.
Smaller business fleets accounted for 3,111 registrations, making for a rise of 13.3%.
Petrol-powered cars retained their best-selling status, comprising 58.1% of all registrations, while battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) remained the second-most popular fuel type, with deliveries up by more than half to 20,522 and 15.4% of the market.
Plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) posted strong growth, up 33.3% with 8,595 registered in the month, while hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) recorded a 7.7% increase to 15,026 units.
As a result, electrified vehicles accounted for more than one in three registrations in April.
The market had grown by 16.9% in the first four months of 2023, the SMMT said, worth £3.2bn, as supply chain pressures eased.
That led to a positive revision of the quarterly market outlook, with 1.83 million new car registrations expected in 2023, up from the 1.79 million anticipated in January.
The new outlook represented a 13.5% increase - the highest percentage gain since 1983.
However, the SMMT downgraded its expected 2023 market share for BEVs from 19.7% to 18.4%, due to high energy costs and insufficient charging infrastructure, which were anticipated to soften demand.
Its latest outlook for 2024, meanwhile, suggested that 22.6% of new car registrations would be BEVs - a downward revision from the 23.3% forecast in January.
The SMMT called for greater investment in infrastructure, more incentives to encourage purchase, and faster action to accelerate the uptake of zero-emission vehicles ahead of the zero-emission vehicle mandate coming into effect next year.
“The new car market is increasingly bullish, as easing supply chain pressures provide a much-needed boost,” said SMMT chief executive officer Mike Hawes.
“However, the broader economic conditions and chargepoint anxiety are beginning to cast a cloud over the market’s eagerness to adopt zero emission mobility at the scale and pace needed.
“To ensure all drivers can benefit from electric vehicles, we need everyone - government, local authorities, energy companies and charging providers - to accelerate their investment in the transition and bolster consumer confidence in making the switch.”
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.