UK car manufacturing in 17-year high | Industry - Car News Jan 2017

14:10 Friday 27 Jan 2017

Figures published today reveal that UK car production reached a 17-year high in 2016.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers confirmed that 1,722,698 vehicles rolled off UK production lines last year, the highest total output since the turn of the millennium.

Exports are at an all-time high, with the UK car manufacturing industry reaping the rewards of investment in world-class production facilities, cutting-edge design and technology, and skilled and productive workers. Ten brand new models have entered UK production in the past twelve months; nine of those were from premium brands, a sector in which the UK is now the second biggest producer in Europe. Demand for exports rose by more than 10%, setting a new record for the second year in a row, with around eight-in-ten UK built cars heading overseas.

Exports to the rest of the European Union were up by 7.5%, highlighting the economic upturn across the continent, while in the UK’s second-largest export market – the United States – there was a spectacular growth of 47.2%.

Domestic demand for UK-built cars increased by 2.4% last year, with one in seven new cars registered in the UK now built here.