© Archyde.com. New cars at a showroom for sale in Cheshire, UK, in this photo from Archyde.com archive.
(Archyde.com) – Britain’s Motor Manufacturers and Traders Association said on Friday that British car production rose 7.4 percent in October from a year earlier, driven mainly by higher exports of luxury and specialty models to the European Union.
The union added that 69,524 cars were built in Britain in October, more than in the same month last year, but still 48.4 percent below 2019 levels.
The union said British carmakers were still affected by global chip shortages and supply chain problems.
“A return to an increase in UK car production in October is welcome – although production remains well below pre-Covid levels amid disruption to component supplies,” said Mike Howes, chief executive of the consortium.
“Getting the sector back on track in 2023 is a priority, given the jobs, exports and economic contribution that the auto industry is supporting,” he added.
The Association of Automobile Manufacturers and Traders said that a large part of production, about 81 percent, in October went abroad, mainly to the European Union, while a smaller part went to countries such as the United States, Australia and Turkey.
British car factories produced a record 61,339 battery-powered electric cars a year to date, an increase of 16.2 percent compared to the same period in 2021.
(Prepared by Ali Khafaji for the Arabic Bulletin)