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HOW HEALTHY IS THE UK CAR INDUSTRY?
1st August 2002, Page 32
1st August 2002
Page 32
Page 32, 1st August 2002
— HOW HEALTHY IS THE UK CAR INDUSTRY?
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• Although this year's new car sales are outstripping previous records, car transporters are not necessarily reaping all the benefits.
An increasing proportion of cars sold in the UK are built abroad and the opportunities for importing them by rail are likely to grow. Last year 76% of the 2.46 million cars sold were imported, compared with 66% of the 2.17 million sold in 1997.
If anything, the level of imports will increase because the efficiency of UK plants compares poorly with many overseas plants.
Over the last year the UK's overall output has dropped markedly: Ford's Dagenham car and van site and Vauxhall's Luton car plant used to make 148,000 and 112,000 vehicles a year respectively.