UK truck market rises by a quarter in 2011
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By David Wilcox THE UK TRUCK market rose by a quarter in 2011, beneiting from a strong recovery in the tractor unit sector. Data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) shows that registrations of new trucks above 3.5 tonnes GVW rose by 24.6% in 2011, reaching 42,944.
SMMT chief executive Paul Everitt describes 2011 as a “good year for the CV market”, despite the total remaining 16% below the average of the previous 10 years (51,117).
Heavy trucks drove the recovery in 2011, while registrations of tractor units rose by 52.5% to reach 18,240. The number of heavy rigid trucks (over 16 tonnes GVW) registered grew by 27.7%. But growth was far weaker for lighter trucks, with those between 6 tonnes and 16 tonnes GVW up by just 16.4%. The number of light trucks/heavy vans in the 3.5to 6-tonne GVW category fell by 19.4% to just 5,534. Excluding this sector, leaving just trucks of over 6 tonnes GVW, the truck market grew by 35.6% in 2011, from 27,588 to 37,410.
Daf extended its lead in the 6-tonnes-plus market, with registrations up by just over 50%, taking its market share up to 26.36%. Mercedes-Benz holds on to second place with market share down from 18.08% to 16.91%.
MAN turned in a strong sales performance, leaping from ifth to third in the table thanks to a 73% increase in registrations that took its market share from 9.98% to 12.76%. The two Volvo group subsidiaries, Volvo Trucks and Renault Trucks, both had a solid year, edging up their market shares. The remaining two big players in the heavy truck market, Scania and Iveco, saw their registrations rise by less than the UK average, with both companies losing some of their market share. Everitt, however, is forecasting “a broadly lat year” for CV registrations in 2012.
● There will be a in-depth analysis of the 2011 UK truck market in CM 26 January.