New U.K. Car Sales Tumble 23% in October

The month of October seems to be turning into a nightmare for the auto industry worldwide. A few days after we learned that U.S. auto sales plummeted 32% in October to the lowest monthly for nearly a quarter of a century, London-based Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT) announced that U.K. registrations of new cars plunged 23% to 128,352 in October from 166,797 a year earlier. "October has proved another difficult month for the UK motor industry and action is needed to help restore consumer confidence and encourage buyers back to the showrooms," said Paul Everitt, SMMT chief executive.

"Cuts in interest rates that are swiftly passed on to consumers, scrapping planned increases in VED and maintaining public expenditure on new vehicles are essential parts of the package required by industry. There is also a clear role for European action to support continued investment in new, lower carbon vehicle technologies," Everitt added.

Year-to-date auto sales in the U.K. are down 8.8% to 1.92 million vehicles. The SMMT also lowered its 2008 sales forecast by 4.9% to 2.15 million vehicles, the lowest estimate for more than a decade.