New car registrations in the UK slumped by 24.3% in June, with 140,958 new vehicles getting registered.
The data released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows that it is the weakest June performance since 1996.
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The ongoing shortage of essential components, which has been worsened by the pandemic-related restrictions in China, has impacted the global vehicle production.
In contrast, battery electric vehicles (BEVs) recorded a 14.6% increase in volume, with their market share reaching 16.1%.
While uptake of plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEV) fell by 4,425, plug-in vehicles made up over a fifth (21.6%) of new cars joining the road in June.
Apart from hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), all other powertrains saw declines in registration volumes and market share.
The data shows that car makers prioritised private consumers with large fleets recording a fall of 27.6% in registrations and the fleet and business share of the market shrinking to 50.7%.
For the year-to-date period, new vehicle registrations have fallen by 11.9% to 802,079 units, which is the weakest first half-year performance since 1992, barring 2020.
SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: “The semiconductor shortage is stifling the new car market even more than last year’s lockdown. Electric vehicle demand continues to be the one bright spot, as more electric cars than ever take to the road, but while this growth is welcome it is not yet enough to offset weak overall volumes, which has huge implications for fleet renewal and our ability to meet overall carbon reduction targets.
“With motorists facing rising fuel costs, however, the switch to an electric car makes ever more sense and the industry is working hard to improve supply and prioritise deliveries of these new technologies given the savings they can afford drivers.”
Car production in the UK grew for the first time since June 2021 in May, up 13.3% compared with April.
