New car market falls in October, but EV sales rise

Sales figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that the UK new car market fell for the second time this year in October, down by -6.0 per cent to 144,288 new registrations. Declines were recorded across all buyer types, with fleets falling for the second time this year, down -1.7 per cent, and the low-volume business market declining -12.8 per cent. Private purchases continued their two-year long wane, down -11.8 per cent, meaning fewer than four in 10 (38.8 per cent) of new cars registered in the first 10 months have gone directly to private buyers.