UK Car Production Grows 9.9% On Foreign Demand

UK car production rose for the third successive month in April, supported by strong export demand along with continued ease in global supply chain shortages, particularly with regard to semiconductors, data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, or SMMT, showed Thursday.

Car production climbed 9.9 percent year-on-year to 66,527 units in April, driven by a 14.7 percent surge in exports, with more than 8 in 10 UK-made cars heading overseas.

Meanwhile, output for the home market declined notably by 8.3 percent.

Exports claimed 82.4 percent of total production, and the home market gained 17.6 percent.

The European Union remained by far the most important global market, taking 58.4 percent of all exports.

Production of hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and battery electric vehicles, or EVs, jumped 56.2 percent year-on-year in April.

The news comes as the UK and EU automotive sectors face a looming cliff edge with rules of origin agreed in the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement, governing local content for electric vehicles and batteries, due to get tougher from January 1, 2024, the SMMT said.

"Most immediately, this means finding a solution to the rules of origin challenge faced by manufacturers on both sides of the Channel, else we risk the application of tariffs - and therefore unnecessary cost - on the very vehicles we are trying to encourage consumers to purchase," Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said.