06/11/12
By Jake Richards
New car sales accelerated ahead last month, figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) have shown.
A total of 151,252 cars were registered in October 2012 - a 12.1 per cent rise on the October 2011 figure.
Private sales last month rose almost 24%, while sales of alternatively-fuelled vehicles soared almost 39 per cent.
The private-sale boom took the year-to-date total sales figure to 1,771,861 - a 5 per cent rise on the January-October 2011 total.
The SMMT has revised upwards its forecast for full-year sales to more than two million units, compared with 1.94 million in 2011.
However, the year-to-date figure for 2012 is still some 16 per cent, or 335,000 units, below the 2007, pre-recession volume.
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt said today: "Despite uncertainty in the European economy, the UK new car market continues to grow.
"It is encouraging to see the alternatively-fuelled vehicle market performing strongly. Although this sector represents only a small share of the overall market, it is vital that the Government sustains its consumer incentive programme and maximises the benefits available through the vehicle taxation system."
