British automotive production falls sharply in 2019
- The decline in passenger car production in the United Kingdom is accelerating in 2019. It fell by 14.4% in March (to 126,195 units), down for the tenth consecutive month, and by 20.4% in the first quarter (to 350,524 units). Production of cars for the British market fell by 18.1% and production of cars for export by 13.4%.
- The SMMT (British Motorcar Manufacturers' Association) estimates that a hard Brexit (without an agreement with the European Union) could lead to a decrease in car production in the United Kingdom by about 30%, to 1.1 million units per year by 2021 (which would be a return to the volumes produced in the mid-1980s). On the other hand, if the negotiations between London and Brussels lead to a favourable agreement and a transition period maintaining the status quo, British car production could reach 1.36 million units in 2019 and 1.42 million units in 2021, compared to 1.52 million in 2018 and 1.67 million in 2017. Before the vote in favour of Brexit in 2016, the British car industry was on track to produce two million cars per year by 2020.
- On the other hand, the production of commercial vehicles in the country continues to increase. It stood at 27,513 units in the first quarter (+41.2%), including 9,098 units in March alone (+24.5%). Since most of the commercial vehicles produced in the United Kingdom are exported, it is understandable that sales of these vehicles continue to increase, especially as the European LCV market remains on a positive trend.
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