February 
Car Editorial - February 2012
Given that used car prices are always in a state of flux it is useful to take the occasional snap-shot of the current position relative to recent history, and to the cost of other popular goods and services. So, what is the value of a used car relative to the earlier years of this century? Most importantly of all, what are retail buyers being expecte... more
February
Car Market Trend - February 2012
The SMMT reported that new car registrations for December fell by 3.7% to 119,188 units. This gave an annual total of 1,941,253 units, down 4.4% on the 2010 figure of 2,030,846 units. 2010 had the unwanted distinction of the lowest annual total for the century, so 2011 now marks a new low point. There are divergent opinions from the key commentato... more
January
Car Edtorial - January 2012
When asking dealers about their sales prospects for January we received a mixed response ranging from ‘it is too difficult to call’ to ‘I don’t know, but we will just have be prepared for whatever comes our way’. It is against this backdrop of uncertainty that we attempt to give some guidance for dealer prospects in 2012.
The forec... more
January
Car Market Trends - January 2012
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that new car registrations fell by 4.2% in November to 134,027 units. The most notable feature of the figures continues to be the lacklustre performance of the private sector. Year-to-date, private registrations were down 14.1% compared to the total market that is down 4.5%. In November, the priv... more
December
International Fleet world - Remarketing feature – November 2011
Comments from Dean Bowkett, Technical Director and Chief Editor, EurotaxGlass’s
1. What are the historical reasons for the strengths of remarketing channels, e.g. auctions, in some markets and what are current/future trends?
Looking across Europe there is a plethora of metho... more
December
Car Editorial Comment - December 2011
One notable feature about the used car market is that nothing stays the same for very long. At a high level used car price fluctuations and underlying depreciation are a major preoccupation for dealers when buying and selling. In addition, there is an ongoing undercurrent of change in terms of the availability and desirability of certain t... more
December
Car Market Trends - December 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that new car registrations increased by 2.6% in October resulting in a slight improvement in the year-to-date deficit to 4.5%. Once again, the fleet sector continues to underpin the market with an improvement from last October of 7.9%.
Whilst this looks like encouraging news o... more
November
Car Editorial - November 2011
We are all conscious of the volatility in used car prices this year. Although prices have generally followed the seasonal peaks and troughs of the most recent 5 year trend we have also seen movements go beyond these trends.
If we look at the area of the market covering cars aged between 2.6 to 4.5 years, average prices in September matche... more
November
Car Market Trends - November 2011
New car registrations
Taking the SMMT September figures at face value, the 332,476 registrations appeared to be an upbeat result especially because this was only 0.8% down on the previous year. September also continued the trend seen all year with retail sales depressed and fleet sales continuing some upward momentum. This translated ... more
October
Car Editorial - October 2011
As we start the final quarter there is always a sense of nervous anticipation surrounding prospects for the used car business. To some extent history is always repeated because there are the same elements in the mix. On the one hand September is responsible for creating around 17% of annual new car sales and this creates a surge of part-exchanges and ... more
October
Car Market Trends - October 2011
New registrations
The SMMT reported that the new car market for August increased by 7.3% to 59,346 units. More often than not, August has become the lowest selling month of the year accounting for only around 3% of total sales. So even though this was the first recorded increase in monthly sales since June 2010, we should be careful of... more
September
Car Editorial - September 2011
Over the period of the last 12 to 18 months the two major auction companies have been devising and implementing a grading structure for used cars to define condition. The prime motivation for this move was to provide the ever growing number of online buyers with more information on which to make a buying decision, in the absence of being in the sale... more
September
Car Market Trends - September 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that new car registrations in July fell by 3.5% for a total of 131,634 units. The figures conveyed the continuing theme of a robust fleet sector and depressed demand from retail buyers. With August traditionally one of the weakest sales months of the year, most of the attention switches to the ... more
August
Car Editorial - August 2011
One of the more telling statistics to come out of the SMMT car registration statistics for June was that private sales were down 18.1% and fleet sales were up by 3.4% for the first 6 months of the year. This is based on the overall market being down 7.1%. With such a dramatic swing in business, by customer type, there should also be a discernable chang... more
August
Car Market Trends - August 2011
New Registrations
The SMMT reported that registrations for June fell by 6.2% to give a total of 183,125 units. Year-to-date, the market is down 7.1%. Although it is impossible to quantify, there is a strong sense that self- registrations have been rising steadily over recent months. It is perhaps not surprising that those franchised dea... more
July
Car Editorial - July 2010
The new car market for diesel fuelled cars has displayed an exponential pattern of growth over the last 10 years. In 2000 diesel sales accounted for less than 15% of the total market and by the end of last year this had climbed to 46%. The May 2011 registration figures, issued by the SMMT, recorded that this figure has risen again, this time to a new lan... more
July
Car Market Trends - July 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that 150,431 registrations were achieved in May, representing a year-on-year decline of 1.7%. Registrations over the first 5 months of 2011 have fallen by 7.3%. The new market continues to be underpinned by the fleet sector with the rise for May amounting to 11.1%. What is more telling is the depres... more
June
Car Editorial - June 2011
Those of us who were observing the Auction market in April would have gained the very distinct impression that trading conditions had deteriorated. Inventories reached an all year high at the same time that buyers’ appetite was on the wane. This fading interest was worsened by the extended holiday break for many between Easter and the Royal Wedding.
... more
June
Car Market Trends - June 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported a fall in registrations for April amounting to 7.4% to give a total of 137,746 units. After the first 4 months of the year registrations stand at 696,082 units, 8.5% lower than 2010. Fleet sales continue to underpin the market with further gains in April of 6.5%.
Used car sales
... more
May
Car Editorial - May 2011
The harsh reality of life is that household disposable incomes are shrinking for the first time in thirty years. Neither is there any sign of improvement this year with the onset of higher taxes and inflation outstripping pay rises. Even though fuel costs have reduced marginally in recent weeks the headline increase in fuel since the beginning of last yea... more
May
Car Market Trends - May 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported new car registrations of 366,101 units for March, a 7.9% reduction from last year. This is a more positive result than the industry expected because last year’s figures included the artificial lift created by the scrappage scheme. The headline total disguises the fact that the retail sector remains... more
April
Car Editorial – April 2011
When dealers reflected on events in 2010 many were heard to say that it felt like a ‘normal’ year. The thinking behind this comment was that the patterns of trading and the price movements throughout the year were more typical of recollections in the years prior to 2008, before the recessional upheaval of 2008 and 2009.
We have now ha... more
April
Car Market Trends - April 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that new car registrations fell by 7.7% in February compared to the previous year, for a total of 63,424 units. After the first 2 months of 2011 the market had declined by 10.2%, reflecting a slightly more upbeat situation than was forecast at the start of the year.
The message being con... more
March
Car Editorial – March 2011
Any time soon the retail demand for convertibles will gather pace. We say any time soon because it is very difficult to be precise about timings. Usually the rapid improvement coincides with a spell of spring sunshine, although there are always a few canny retail buyers who make an earlier move to get the benefit of pre increase prices. But the key q... more
March
Car Market Trends – March 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT reported that new car registrations for January fell by 11.5% on the previous year to give a total of 128,811 units. A year-on-year reduction was widely predicted because 18% of January 2010 sales were accounted for by the Scrappage Scheme. In the event, it was of some relief that this January's total was... more
February
Car Market Trends - February 2011
New car registrations
The SMMT recorded registrations of 123,817 units in December for a year-on-year fall of 18%. In spite of this, the overall market for 2010 still showed a modest gain of 1.8%. One of the most telling statistics was that volumes were up 19.9% in the first half, but down 13.8% in the second half. Unfortunately... more
February
Car Editorial – February 2011
In the late summer and early autumn of 2008, the dramatic increases in fuel prices, coupled with the threat of a new VED pricing regime, placed severe market pressures on large engined cars, and the bigger 4x4s in particular. There was also the negative publicity that surrounded their anti green credentials and, on occasion, owners were subjecte... more
January
Car Editorial - January 2011
In the Editorial this time last year we stated that "The consensus of opinion is that the correction in prices is largely complete". In general terms this proved to be true. To be more precise, if we take 3 year old cars from the small, lower, and upper medium sectors which account for almost 70 % of the 3 year old market, prices are likely ... more
January
Car Market Trends - January 2011
According to the SMMT the year-on-year sales for November saw a decline of 11.5%, but this still represented 3.4% uplift for the first 11 months of 2010. The total was 1,907,029 units, giving rise to a high probability that sales would exceed more than 2 million units for the year. The market continued to be more resilient than expected ... more
December
Car Editorial - December 2010
One notable feature about the used car market is that nothing stays the same for very long. Used car price fluctuations and underlying depreciation are a major preoccupation for dealers when buying and selling. Aside from these visible price movements there is an ongoing undercurrent of change in terms of the availability and desirability o... more
December
Car Market Trends - December 2010
The SMMT reported that registrations for October were down by 22.2% but the market is still up by 4.8% over the first 10 months of 2010. Even though the forecast for the last two months of the year is expected to reflect a similar degree of decline as October, the market should end up at a fraction over 2 million units. It is a signific... more
November
Car Editorial - November 2010
We don't need reminding that used car prices have been on a roller-coaster ride over the last two and a half years. The slump in 2008 was followed by an even more remarkable recovery in 2009 and prices this year have so far not been a reflection of 'normal' seasonal patterns.
So, what is the value of a used car relative to the earl... more
November
Car Market Trends - November 2010
The SMMT reported a registration total of 335,246 units for September representing a fall of 8.9% from a year earlier. On the face of it, this would appear to be a positive result given that almost a fifth of last year’s total was attributable to Scrappage Scheme sales. However, dealers managed to make a big push on registrations... more
September
Car Editorial - October 2010
Even though the increase in VAT from 17.5% to 20% does not take effect until 1st January 2011, the implications of this change for the motor trade have already surfaced.
For many manufacturers the order lead times on some model lines have already extended to the New Year so customers face the prospect of paying the additional VAT.... more
September
Car Market Trends - October 2010
The SMMT reported that new car registrations for August reached a total of 55,035 units representing a fall from the previous year of 17.5%. However, year-to-date sales were still 13.2% higher; although as the year progresses, these gains are expected disappear.
New car shortages were a prominent feature of the market and manu... more
September
Car Editorial - September 2010
From 1st April 2009 the Vehicle Excise Duty regime was expanded from 7 to 14 bands based on CO2 emissions. The rates applied to all cars registered on or after 1st March 2001. All cars registered before 1st March continued to be taxed according to engine size because insufficient CO2 data existed before this date.
The followin... more
September
Car Market Trends - September 2010
The SMMT reported that new car sales in July suffered a year-on-year fall of 13.2%. This was the first monthly reduction after 12 successive months of increases. Considering that the Scrappage Scheme was accounting for almost 20% of monthly registrations this time last year, it is surprising that sales are holding up so well. For the f... more
August
Car Editorial - August 2010
In a previous commentary we have alluded to the fact that the used car supply is reducing in direct response to the decline in new car registrations. The losses are twofold: firstly each month of low registrations produces a proportionally lower number of part exchanges and, secondly: with a prolonged period of low registrations, the car parc... more
August
Car Market Trends - August 2010
The SMMT posted a very positive result for June with registrations up 10.8% compared to a year earlier, and an increase of 19.9% for the first half of 2010. With only a few new cars being delivered in the wake of the Scrappage Scheme, it was the fleet sector that delivered most of the improvement (up 25% on June of last year). The remaini... more
July
Car Editorial - July 2010
Having gone through the dramatic falls in used car prices in 2008 to be followed by an even more dramatic rise in 2009, this year was expected to see a pattern of price changes more typical of the earlier years. That is to say, an increase in the early spring, a decline during the summer months, a brief recovery in early autumn before a more ... more
July
Car Market Trends - July 2010
The SMMT reported the eleventh successive monthly increase in sales with May recording an improvement of 13.5% from last year. This upbeat May figure was expected because it was the last month of cars delivered from the Scrappage Scheme, although the contribution made by the Scheme was far less than any previous month. The figures do underl... more
June
June
Car Editorial - June 2010
We are attempting to answer two key questions: “How are petrol and diesel cars performing in the market?”, and “is there a good case for used car buyers to look upon diesel cars more favourably?”
Historically the market has commanded a price premium for a diesel fuelled car over equivalent petrol, and this still holds true... more
June
Car Market Trends - June 2010
The SMMT reported a year-on-year increase of 11.5% in April. All of the improvement came from the private sector, and the lion’s share of this, was due to orders being satisfied as part of the Scrappage Scheme. Following the closure of the Scheme in March, the registration figures for the coming months are expected to show a marked year-o... more
May
Car Editorial - May 2010
Of the total annual motoring costs incurred by motorists, depreciation accounts for around 45%. Whilst many would acknowledge this as a necessary evil of car ownership, some would be little surprised to learn that the second largest ownership cost is fuel at approximately 15%, higher than insurance, servicing, tyres, and taxes.
In r... more
May
Car Market Trends - May 2010
The SMMT reported registrations of 397,383 registrations for March, representing a year-on-year increase of 26.6%. Whilst the lion’s share of this increase was from the private sector (up 53.5%) the fleet sector also made a very significant contribution (up 41.3%). The key point is that March represented the biggest selling month for 2 y... more
April
Car Editorial - April 2010
Given that the UK operates in a mature market the sale of virtually every new car results in a used car being presented to the used market. These used cars will find the next end user via a number of possible channels from the retail dealer supplying the new car, a different retail dealer who has acquired the part-exchange or defleeted ... more
April
Car Market Trends - April 2010
The SMMT reported that registrations for February were 26.4% up compared to a year earlier giving an upbeat year-to-date position of 28.7%. Whilst Scrappage continued to account for almost 20% of this year’s sales total, there have been some tentative signs of sales recovery from the Fleet and Business sectors over the first 2 months r... more
March
Car Editorial - March 2010
A protracted downturn in the new car market has significant consequences for the used market in the following years. The central issue is one of reducing used supply. It was a situation that was prevalent following the recession of the early 90’s and it is a situation that will be repeated over the next few years.
The legacy of ... more
March
Car Market Trends - March 2010
The SMMT reported that new car sales for January increased by 29.8% for a total of 145,479 units. The Scrappage Scheme continued to underpin this improvement, although it was interesting to note that this business only accounted for 17.8% of total sales when the average monthly run-rate, last year, was 21%. This would suggest that the... more
February
The protracted downturn in new-car sales over recent years will have a significant effect on the used market in 2010 and beyond, warns Glass’s Guide. The main cause for concern among dealers will be a major reduction in the supply of one- and two-year-old used cars.
“It was a situation that was prevalent following the recession of the early 1990s and it will be repeated over the nex... more
February
Car Market Trends - February 2010
Used car sales
Not surprisingly, the weather has been the major talking point and the most significant influence on the used car market between Christmas and the second week of the New Year. A feature of the bad weather was that it has affected dealers on a nationwide basis which meant that business was similarly... more
February
Car Editorial - February 2010.
The SMMT reported that new car registrations for 2009 reached 1,994,999 units, a fairly modest year-on-year reduction of 6.4%. Of course, the Scrappage Scheme has been very successful in stimulating a lacklustre new car market and its contribution to the very slender profits of many franchised dealers has been very welcome. However, th... more
January
Mid-Month Update - January 2010
Snow and sub zero temperatures had a profound effect on used car business during the post-Christmas week and the first two weeks of the New Year. It is estimated that retailers suffered a dip in sales between 25% and 30% over this period, relative to their expectations. However, the trade demand for cars in the week commencing 4th January... more
January
Supply shortages, tighter trading margins and limited retail demand will make 2010 a particularly tough year for used-car dealers, predicts Glass's Guide. With the expected return of seasonal used-car depreciation, success will depend on a greater focus on the procurement of trade cars and a strict policy of managing ageing stock.
Reduced supply of used cars in 2009 led to an increas... more
January
Car Editorial - January 2010
Events in the used car market in both 2009 and 2008 could very appropriately be described as both spectacular and without parallel. The most obvious manifestation of these changes was the fall in trade prices of nearly 20% over the full calendar year in 2008, followed by a recovery in the following year of around 30%. So which way will the... more
January
Car Market Trends - January 2010
The SMMT reported that sales last November were up a massive 57.6% for a monthly total of 158,082 units. The Scrappage influence was very significant as demonstrated by the performance of the Private sector with sales up 141.2% from the previous November. The year-to-date situation for 2009 continued to show a slight improvement due th... more
