Britain built almost a fifth fewer cars in the first half of this year compared with 2021 as car makers continue to suffer what industry lobby group the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) describes as the equivalent of long Covid, referring to the after-effects of the pandemic.
However, the figures did show a small uptick in June, suggesting the continuing semiconductor shortage might be easing slightly, the SMMT said.
The first-half production of 403,131 cars is 19% down on the same period last year. It was the weakest first half since the 2020 pandemic year and worse than 2009, when the UK was gripped by the effects of the global financial crisis.
The numbers were depressed by a turbulent first half of 2022 for Jaguar Land Rover, which vies with Nissan for the title of Britain’s largest car manufacturer by volume.
Jaguar Land Rover on Wednesday posted a loss of over half a billion pounds for the quarter ending in June. The Tata-owned company blamed the slower ramp-up in production for the new Range Rover and Range Rover Sport, both built in the company’s Solihull plant.
Meanwhile, production of the Jaguar XE and XF at the company’s Castle Bromwich facility has effectively stopped. Jaguar sold just 183 XE and 302 XFs globally outside of China in the three months to the end of June, company figures show. The company’s order backlog now stands at 200,000, suggesting a strong boost for UK manufacturing once supply shortages ease.
The poor figures also reflect the late-2021 shutdown of the Honda Swindon plant, and the stoppage of Vauxhall Astra production at the Ellesmere Port plant, which is being revamped to switch to production of small electric vans from Stellantis brands.
A rise in output at Vauxhall’s Luton van plant meant production of commercials was the one bright spot, rising 47.5%. Van production for the first half was the highest in a decade, at just over 50,000 units, the SMMT said.
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