The current climate of uncertainty continues to affect businesses and consumers as the decline in new car sales shows.
The new car market declined by -6.7% in October with 143,251 units registered, the latest new passenger car registrations by the SMMT show. Year to date, the market is -2.9 down from last year. Sales of pure electric cars rose 151.8% , petrol was down -3.2% and diesel declined -28.3%.
It is encouraging to see demand for pure electric vehicles expand despite challenges. Not only electric vehicles but also the latest petrol and diesel cars are facing supply constraints which will improve as we approach 2020.
Franchised retailers are making significant investments in their online strategy as well as their dealerships to ensure a platform for future growth and offset consumer uncertainty.
We expect a relatively quiet last quarter of the year with a solid used car sector continuing to help counterbalance the decline in new car sales.
