UK car manufacturing hits its highest in a decade as UK exports autos to more than 100 countries
The markets may be in turmoil and growth may be teetering on the brink – but British car manufacturers are having a ball.
Figures by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said manufacturers in the UK made 1,595,697 vehicles in 2015 – more than any year since 2005.
Manufacturers also exported a record number of cars, with 77.3 per cent, or 1.2 million units, shipped to more than 100 countries worldwide. That's despite encountering difficulties in the likes of China, where demand fell 37.5 per cent, and Russia, where exports fell 69.4 per cent.
In Europe, demand rose 11.3 per cent. In fact, Europe now accounts for 57.5 per cent of all British car exports, while demand in the US rose 26.5 per cent.
Most importantly, in the UK, demand for British-made cars rose 8.1 per cent – which means one in seven new cars registered in the UK last year had "Made in Britain" stamped on it. There's patriotism for you…
But Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, struck a cautious note.
“Continued growth in an intensely competitive global marketplace is far from guaranteed… and depends heavily on global economic conditions and political stability. Europe is our biggest trading partner and the UK’s membership of the European Union is vital for the automotive sector in order to secure future growth and jobs.”
