The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders or “smut” to their friends report that new van sales have fallen off badly. Commercial vehicle production fell by 65.2% in April to a miserable 7,655 units for the month.
New van registrations for April were down 45.6% for the month and down 30.3% to 236,967 for the rolling year. The implication is that fleet managers and other buyers are increasingly turning to the second hand market.
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt hasn’t stopped believing though: “With the scrappage incentive scheme fully operational, industry is optimistic about the positive impact this will have on the market and on UK production facilities,” he claims.
