The last few years have seen a dramatic increase in British car production, which is now at a higher level than pre-recession.
According to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, UK car production grew throughout April 2016. 150,000 cars were produced – an increase of 16.4% compared with April last year.
Export v Home Market
The British automotive industry is synonymous with premium marques. These include the iconic Aston Martin, now widely associated with the James Bond franchise; Jaguar Land Rover; and Rolls Royce. Many foreign-owned marques now opt to conduct production in the UK, including Mini, Honda and Nissan.
With so many premium British marques available and our reputation for strong quality, exports have increased by 23.7% compared with April last year; however, according to the Financial Times, demand in the home market is down by 7.8%.
This decrease could be due to the greater demand for alternative fuel vehicles, which British production is not known for – unlike that of US-based Tesla. According to the SMMT, the demand for this type of vehicle increased by 21.5% in March 2016, with consumers favouring the lower running costs associated with these vehicles.
Financing New Cars
There were over 2.6 million new car registrations in 2015, representing four years of consecutive growth. There is little sign of lasting effects from the recession; however, many Brits are turning to finance to fund their purchases.
Low interest rates are keeping finance deals affordable and three out of four Brits now opt for this type of purchase. Due to the difficult situations many consumers found themselves in during the recession, car finance bad credit in Portsmouth and other areas is common. Many forecourts now offer packages for consumers with poor credit ratings; for example, you can obtain guaranteed car finance in Portsmouth through http://www.rightdrive.co.uk/ and other specialist companies.
These offers will become invaluable. With three out of every four cars having some element of finance against them at the end of 2015, this trend is set to continue throughout 2016.
Jonathon Poskitt, head of sales forecasting at industry analyst LMC Automotive, recently spoke to the Telegraph about how consumers used to see a new vehicle as an asset; now, it is viewed as a utility that they pay a set amount for each month.
