Crippled UK car market begins recovery

The UK car industry began staging a recovery in June as dealerships reopened amid a tentative economic restart following two months of Covid-19 lockdown.

New car registrations fell by 34.9pc on the year to 145,377 units last month, but this was a huge increase from the 89pc year-on-year drop to 20,247 registrations in May, and from April's 97.4pc decline to 4,321 units, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

But many of the new registrations in June were likely for orders made before the lockdown began, implying that fresh demand remains very limited.

Car dealerships were allowed to reopen in England on 1 June as lockdown restrictions eased, although those in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland remained closed for much of the month.

Overall sales in the first half of 2020 almost halved on the year to 653,502, down from 1.27mn in the same period last year.

"While it's welcome to see demand rise above the rock-bottom levels we saw during lockdown, this is not a recovery and barely a restart," SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said. "Many of June's registrations could be attributed to customers finally being able to collect their pre-pandemic orders, and appetite for significant spending remains questionable."

Sales of electric and hybrid vehicles bucked the trend, as those sectors continued to grow strongly. New battery electric vehicle registrations climbed by 261.8pc on the year to 8,903 units in June, while new plug-in hybrid electric vehicle registrations rose by 117pc to 4,926 units.

By Jethro Wookey