With UK car production already 9.3 per cent higher this April than at the same point last year, a recent announcement from Vauxhall has boosted the industry even further, creating thousands of jobs as part of a £125 million investment.
The investment cements the manufacturer’s decision to base the production of their new Astra model at a UK car plant in Merseyside. As a direct result of this, 700 jobs will be created at the plant itself, with a further 3,000 created indirectly through firms which supply vital parts and components for the build.
This boost is not expected to be a short-term fad either, with estimates suggesting the investment will safeguard the future of the production plant for the next ten years at the very least.
UK exports
This news follows other reports which have demonstrated that the UK car industry has been going from strength to strength over the past few months. According to data compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), the UK is still one of the major contenders for car manufacturing in the global industry, building nearly half a million cars in the first quarter or this year.
Of this half a million, almost 400,000 cars were exported overseas, leaving the remainder to drive on home soil. For April alone, just shy of 95,000 vehicles were produced – an increase of almost 10 per cent when compared to the April 2011 figures.
New car purchases
According to SMMT’s Chief Executive, Paul Everitt, this growth is being fuelled by “sustained investment” which is providing new jobs, new opportunities and new cars to British consumers.
In terms of new car sales, numerous car dealers have reported increased figures for the first quarter of 2012, with some claiming they are as much as 6 per cent higher than last year.
Overall, new car sales for April were up by 3.3 per cent; the biggest increase in car sales recorded over the past eight months. This demonstrates how the car industry is defying the tempestuous economic climate which is currently afflicting the UK, after it officially re-entered recession last month.
However, whether this is a result of increased affordability in the car market or down to an increased number of car finance offers is uncertain. These finance offers, which include car loan products, accounted for 60 per cent of all new car sales in 2011, according to the Finance & Leasing Association, and were claimed to be at least partly responsible for the heightened growth experienced in the automotive market that year.