UK’s new-car market rising

Sales of new cars in the UK increased by 14.7 per cent in January to reach 131,994 units, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). 

The figure was up from 115,087 units in the same month a year earlier and the SMMT says it has set the tone for an anticipated countercyclical year of growth.  

Last month’s total was the best start to the year since January 2020’s pre-Covid 149,279 units and marks the sixth successive month of expansion. 

Electric vehicles (EVs) were a key factor behind the latest increase. Hybrids accounted for 14.4 per cent of new car registrations after sales of such vehicles rose 40.6 per cent year on year to 18,976 units. 

Battery electric vehicle (BEV) registrations grew by 19.8 per cent over the same period to reach 17,294 units, or 13.1 per cent of the market. 

While sales of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) only nudged up 0.7 per cent to 9,109 units and a 6.9 per cent market share. 

The SMMT predicts more than one in every four new registrations this year will be for vehicles with a plug, with that proportion increasing to almost one-third of the market in 2024. 

It also says the strong start to the year for the new-vehicle industry is mirrored in the latest market outlook, which anticipates 1.79 million new car registrations in 2023, an 11.1 per cent increase on the past year but still well below 2019 levels.