New car registrations in Britain fell 1.6% year-on-year in March, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders told Reuters on Thursday, although private car sales rose for the first time in two years.
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SMMT reportedly said registrations fell to 435,847 units in March and were down 4.6% in the year to date.
However, sales of cars to individuals rose 0.2% to 222,542 units – the first increase in two years – while sales to business customers slipped 18.5% to 30,292 units.
“The lure of the new ’06 registration plate and some excellent deals on the forecourts has seen new car buyers heading back to dealerships,” said SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan, according to Reuters.
“However, a reasonable March cannot mask the poor start to the year, and 2006 will continue to be a challenge for the industry as we fight for every sale.”
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By GlobalDataSMMT predicts that registrations for 2006 will fall 2.7% on the year to 2.375m units – a much smaller decline than the 5% fall recorded for 2005, Reuters noted.
