British car manufacturers have rolled out the most cars for 16 years
With the uncertainty from the Brexit vote, political ding-dongs over train seats and finding out the weakened sterling could have led to our holidays costing us a bit more than we had bargained for – Britons have a bit to moan about.
But one sector that has provided a welcome burst of good news to the general public is the nation’s car building industry. In fact, it is booming according to data released today.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said British car output was up for the 12th consecutive month in July taking the total for 2016 alone to 1,023,723 – the highest for the first seven months of a year since 2000.
“UK car production in 2016 is booming, with new British-built models in demand across the world. Manufacturers have invested billions to develop exciting new models and produce them competitively here in the UK,” said the SMMT’s Mike Hawes.
(Source: SMMT data)
It is only the third time this millennium that over a million cars have been made in Britain by the end of July.
The results represent a 7.6 per cent monthly change to 2015 and a 12.3 per cent hike for the first seven months compared to 12 months ago.
The news comes in the same week that the SMMT said the used car market is also particularly buoyant.
“Future success will depend on continued new car demand and attracting the next wave of investment so Britain must demonstrate it remains competitive and open for business,” said Hawes.
Read more: Brexit would throw automotive industry into jeopardy, SMMT warns
Of the cars made, there was a 14.1 per cent increase in those staying at home in July 2016 compared to the same month a year before.
Meanwhile, for the first seven months of the year, there was a 13.7 per cent spike in cars made to be sold abroad.