UK commercial vehicle manufacturing rose 8.6% in August, resulting in 6,660 vehicles rolling out of UK factories.
It’s the fifth month running of rising CV output and the most productive August since 2012.
The rise was driven primarily by UK demand, up 24.4% to reach 3,066 units. Exports dropped by a marginal 2.0% to 3,594 – but UK CV manufacturing continues to be export-led, with 54.0% of all output heading overseas last month. The majority of these exports (91.8%) were shipped into the EU – prompting further concerns about the imminent arrival of tariffs on EVs under more stringent rules from the start of 2024.
In the year to date, UK CV manufacturing has risen 14.4% to 74,188 units – rounding off the best first eight months to a year since 2011. Notably, this is some 62.2% above pre-pandemic levels. Growth has been driven by exports, up 23.0%, with 46,789 units exported representing 63.1% of everything made.
Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive, said: “2023 has been a success story for British commercial vehicle production, with robust demand from operators in the UK and overseas. With new electric van production now coming on stream, the immediate future is positive and we expect volumes to grow still further this year.
“To secure future investment, however, we need regulatory and trade certainty, not least a UK–EU agreement to delay tougher rules of origin that would damage competitiveness across the Channel. With the tougher rules due to commence in less than 100 days, time is of the essence.”
