UK auto industry body says July new car sales fall 9%, cuts 2022 outlook

(Reuters) -Britain’s new car registrations fell about 9% in July from a year earlier, as persistent supply shortage of components due to China’s COVID-19 restrictions and the crisis in Ukraine hit deliveries, according to industry data released on Thursday.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said July registrations fell to 112,162 units, driven largely by a slump in registrations by large fleets, while consumer registrations remained steady.

The market is unlikely to recover from the significant losses sustained from chip shortages and disruptions to output even as the sector expects the second half of the year to improve as supply issues start to recede, it said.

It lowered 2022 outlook for new car registrations to 1.6 million from a prior forecast of 1.72 million.

The SMMT said battery electric vehicle (BEV) uptake grew nearly 10% to 12,243 units, gaining a 10.9% market share for July, but it was the weakest monthly growth since the pandemic.

(Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar and Muhammed Husain in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri and Rashmi Aich)