It looks like the UK car market is yet to recover from the collapse of MG Rover, as car sales in Britain fell by more than 3 percent last month as compared to those around the same time last year.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders released figures for the month of May and these just serve to reinforce the impression that there is a lack of consumer confidence. New car registrations for the month of May topped 187,900 as compared to 179,457 units in April. Only 314 MG and Rover cars were sold as compared to the 6,944 that were sold in May 2004.
The year-to-date registrations fell by 6 percent to 1,068,862 vehicles. The society has predicted a 4.6 percent dip in registrations this year, which totals to around 2.5m sales. SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan, said, "The industry is proving resilient as it rides out weakening consumer confidence and the short-term problems associated with MG Rover."
He added that the plans for road charging must not lead to an increase in taxes, "The new road pricing proposals could also have an effect on car buyers. Charging may well have a role in managing demand on our congested road network, but it must not lead to an increase in tax take from the motorist. Any plans to change driving habits will only succeed if Government delivers an improved infrastructure and a credible, cost-efficient public transport network," he commented.
The society said that the sales of soft-top cars are on the way up as nearly 52,000 convertibles were sold so far this year. This represents 4.8 percent of the market. These figures are up from 2.4 percent in 2001.
Meanwhile, Graham Secker an analyst at Morgan Stanley predicted a gloomy future of the economy, "Don't underestimate the growth slowdown. We believe the market's expectations are still too high and that this slowdown will be more protracted than the soft patch last year. Manufacturing is contracting again and the consumer slowdown is gathering pace," he said.
Posted
on : Fri, 10 Jun 2005 07:25 GMT | Loans News
By : Chris Rowe
|
