British commercial vehicle manufacturing rose by a third in 2015 when 94,479 units rolled off production lines, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Demand surged by a third in both domestic and overseas markets, with Europe taking the lion’s share of the 47,179 exports (88%), followed by Asia (6.3%). Meanwhile, manufacturers closed 2015 on a high note, with output for December up 7.7% compared with 2014 to 5,815, driven equally by British and overseas markets.

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Mike Hawes, SMMT chief executive said: “Commercial vehicle production ended 2015 on a very positive note, with another month of growth in December resulting in a substantial boost to volumes for the year.

Exports continued to make up half of UK CV demand, with more than 47,000 vehicles destined for overseas markets, fuelled by the continued recovery of our biggest trading partner, Europe.”

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