New car production in the UK rose 4.3% to 124,197 units last month, which a trade group said was the first rise since May last year.
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UK factories built 124,197 cars and exported 94,884, a year-on-year rise of 9.7%. Production for the domestic market fell 10.2% to 29,313 units, however.
Production of 19,594 commercial vehicles took total vehicle production to 143,791, up 4.7%. Of the total, 106,303 were exported.
Exports of commercial vehicles were off 3.3% to 11,419 while UK market output rose 28.6% to 8,175.
SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan said: “We are starting to see a degree of stability develop in production volumes, following major restructuring and new model introductions last year. Growth came from vehicles destined for export, reflecting the continued importance of the British car industry to the global market.”
He added: “Despite a fall in the production of heavy trucks, overall we saw a healthy 7.9% rise in total commercial vehicle volumes in January 2007.
“Vans continue to flex their muscles in the commercial vehicle arena, with a marked increase in units destined for the home market.”
