Motorcycle registrations stabilise in September amid economic and political uncertainty

“Motorcycle registrations stabilised with a 3.9 per cent sales increase in September following last month’s decline, as both economic and political uncertainty affected demand for bikes”, said Stephen Latham, Head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) which represents motorcycle retailers across the UK, commenting on figures from the Motor Cycle Industry Association.

September is usually a high volume month as customers have opted to wait to obtain the latest registration plate on their new machine. Year-to-date sales are holding steady with 89,283 bikes registered, with a modest growth of 2.3 per cent compared to 2018.

Most power ranges saw signs of improvement, with the exception of the performance bikes in the ‘sport-tour’ and ‘supersport’ sectors, where sales declined by -6.6 per cent and -12.8 per cent respectfully.

Once again Honda was the leading seller in the month registering 2,601 bikes, followed by BMW in second position with 1,490 registrations, and Yamaha in third place with 1,347 motorcycle sales. It is positive to see that Royal Enfield has now established itself in the top-10 manufacturers list, with 352 retro style bikes going on the road in September. Budget-brand Lexmoto also performed well in the month with 779 bikes sold. Both these recent entrants to the top-10 have surpassed Italian brands Piaggio and Ducati who no longer rate in the top-10 listing.

Latham continued, “Motorcycle dealers are optimistic that the market going forward will remain steady throughout the final quarter of 2019”.