Strong UK car sales belie drop in total car production

Total UK car production dipped in April but a strong performance on home soil helped offset the damage of falling exportation.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows that the total number of cars being manufactured in April dipped by 3.8% to 128,312 in comparison with a year earlier.

Some 98,382 cars were manufactured with the intention of being exported – down by 7.6% on last year's figures. However, there was an 11.1% rise to 29,930 in the amount of cars being produced for the UK, although this could not force the total into positive as it represents a much smaller proportion of the market.

Nonetheless, it means that UK car production has surpassed the 500,000 mark in 2015 and domestic market production is up by 19.4% in the year so far.

Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: "UK car production has escalated in recent years and continues to perform steadily in 2015. Manufacturers across the country are poised to see yet more growth following multi-billion pound investments and, providing global markets perform well, output is on track to reach record levels in the next few years."