The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders’ (SMMT) new report has revealed that the UK automotive industry experienced a decline in car production in August, ending two months of growth.

The SMMT reported that 37,072 vehicles were manufactured, coinciding with the industry’s standard summer pause for factory maintenance.

This decline precedes the anticipated effects of a cyberattack on the nation’s largest car manufacturer, likely to be reflected in September’s data.

Commercial vehicle output also fell sharply by 73.2% to 1,621 units, a result of production consolidation at a major company.

Overall, vehicle production in the UK decreased by 18.2% to 38,693 units in August, the lowest since 1956.

This reflects the current adversities faced by the sector, including a sluggish EU market, rising costs, model updates, and tepid economic growth. 

While the total number of cars produced fell, the production of vehicles for the domestic market grew by 11.5% to 7,162 units.  

However, this was not enough to compensate for a 14.2% drop in exports, with 29,910 vehicles destined for international markets, making up 80.7% of the total production.

In contrast, the output of electrified vehicles increased by 40.9% to 16,830 units, comprising 45.4% of August’s total production.

More than 200,000 electrified vehicles have been produced so far this year, marking a 3.7% increase from last year, although overall car production is down by 5.9% to 492,009 units.

Furthermore, year-to-date commercial vehicle production has decreased by 54.4% to 35,922 units.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: “August is always a low volume month due to planned summer maintenance, but the focus is now on September’s performance, and the likely impact of the cyberattack at Britain’s biggest automotive employer.

“Given this incident and the industry’s importance to jobs, growth and trade, rapid delivery of the Industrial Strategy and DRIVE35 is now critical. The sector is resilient, but SMMT is engaged with members and the government to understand what additional supportive measures may be needed.” 

The SMMT’s recent Trade Report underscores the UK automotive industry’s capacity to withstand challenges, maintaining its status as a significant global trader projected to surpass £110bn in trade for the third consecutive year, sustaining 796,000 jobs, and achieving a turnover of £92bn.

An earlier SMMT report further emphasised the UK automotive sector’s global trade prominence, with £115bn ($155.62bn) in imports and exports recorded last year.