Commercial Vehicle Production 

UK commercial vehicle production rises 32.8% in May 2015

Commercial vehicle production in May 2015 has risen 32.8% compared with the previous year’s sales according to the SMMT. 6,808 buses, trucks and vans were manufactured last month, and year-on-year sales have risen by 24.9%.

The main reason that the car manufacturing industry has been doing well has been the surge in the number of vehicles made for the domestic market.  Home production increased by 13.3% according to the SMMT, and with a number of new vehicle models due to enter production in the coming months, production figures are not anticipated to slow down. The increase in production has been boosted by a rising number of exports which rose 69.4% last month. In fact, throughout 2015 half of all commercial vehicles manufactured have been exported.

The SMMT’s Chief Executive Mike Hawes said this of the increase in production “May’s strong figures consolidate the UK commercial vehicle manufacturing sector’s return to form, following a more subdued period over the past couple of years when changes to type approval legislation disrupted fleet renewal patterns”.

The good news has been contrasted with the fact that there has been a decrease in engine output. Mike Hawes has commented on this, stating: "UK engine manufacturing remains relatively stable for the year to date and although May registered a drop in production, it is encouraging that despite retooling efforts for Euro-6 production, volumes surpassed the all important 1m unit mark last month. We are optimistic that growth will return to the sector over the coming months as UK-produced Euro-6 manufacture gets underway ahead of the September deadline and major new engine plants come on stream later in the year." Also, the total number of cars produced between January and May 2015 is 119,338, 0.8% lower than the number for January-May 2014.  

As a leading provider of motor trade insurance for commercial vehicles, we’re pleased to hear that manufacturing figures are strong and that the car production industry is doing well.