► UK car production falls
► Down 14% in June 2017
► Demand falters blamed
Output from British car factories fell by 13.9% to 136,901 vehicles in June 2017, new figures out today show.
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) reported the drop and said that faltering demand was finally catching up with a sector that has enjoyed a long boom.
The fall in demand appears to be accelerating; last month’s drop was significantly higher than the annual rate of decline. Year-to-date, UK car production is down 2.9%.
UK car production: a boom in recent years
This is no sudden collapse, yet. Although there have now been three consecutive months of output reductions, UK car production remains at its second highest level in 12 years.
The graph issued by the SMMT shows just how much UK output has soared in the past six years. It had predicted that British factories would be building 2 million cars a year by the end of the decade.
That target now looks unlikely, as faltering demand and uncertainties over Brexit continue to cast a shadow over the economy and consumer demand, especially domestically.
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