October new car market beats pre-pandemic levels

SMMT reports EV growth subdued by uneven roll-out of charging infrastructure across UK

October’s new car market grew by 14.3% to reach 153,529 registrations, 7.2% above pre-pandemic levels and marking the best performance for the month since 2018, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

The 15th month of consecutive growth was driven almost entirely by large fleet registrations, which grew 28.8% to reach 87,479 units. Private demand was stable at 62,915 vehicles, a 0.3% increase, while the much smaller business sector saw registrations fall...