UK car production rises for the first time in a year

The number of cars built in the UK rose for the first time in a year last month. Production output in March grew 18.2% year on year to 79,018 vehicles. Total output for 2025 so far is down slightly (-3.2%) compared with the same period last year. Notably, 31,661 electric cars left production lines in March, which equates to 45% of total output and a 38.5% uplift year on year. The rise in March was driven by “robust demand”, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said, with 73.3% of builds sent oversees, a rise of 30.6% on last March. Home market production drop 6.1%. Mainland Europe was again the UK’s biggest importer and accounted for 57.2% of total exports, up 28.9% year on year. The US, in the month before 25% import tariffs were announced, was the second biggest export market (15%, a rise of 36.1%), again raising questions about the urgency needed to find a solution between the two governments, said SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes. The trade body notes that before rapidly changing tariffs levies are taken on board, UK-market car production was expected to drop 7.8% compared with 2024. It said that a “rapid response” to “increased protectionism and retaliatory tariffs being levied in key markets” is needed from the UK government to meet “the immediate challenges facing the industry’s exports”. It is “essential” that ministers ensure the “longer-term production competitiveness” of the UK’s automotive industry. Hawes said: “With the last quarter showing demand for British-built cars rising overseas, navigating the new era of trade uncertainty is now the major challenge. “Government has rightly recognised automotive manufacturing’s critical role in Britain’s export economy and must now show urgency and creativity to deliver a deal that supports our competitiveness, spurs domestic demand for the latest cleanest vehicles, and helps factory lines flourish."

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UK car production rises for the first time in a year

Electric cars notably accounted for 45% of the UK's total output in March

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