Covid-19: Northern Ireland car sales fall due to supply chain issues

New car sales in Northern Ireland were down by 31% in September compared to the same month last year, industry data suggests.

Strong demand last year, after lockdowns eased, may account for some of the year-on-year fall.

However, the industry said that global supply chain issues were also hitting supply.

In the UK as a whole, sales were down 35% year on year.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said the figures were "further evidence of the ongoing impact of the Covid pandemic on the sector".

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said that despite strong demand for new vehicles over the summer, "three successive months have been hit by stalled supply due to reduced semiconductor availability, especially from Asia".

• Car registrations at lowest level for two decades

• Freak rise in car sales after Covid-hit 2020

When lockdowns forced production lines to halt, microchip manufacturers diverted the chips that would normally go into new cars to the consumer electronics market, and supply is yet to fully recover.

Second-hand car sales in the UK have more than doubled in recent months due to a shortage of new models.

Year on year, the used car market grew 108.6% in the second quarter, with more than 2.2m vehicles changing hands, according to the trade body.

Increased demand led to a rise in sales of older used cars, with only 12.7% of all vehicles sold being made within the last three years, the lowest on record.

Overall, 3,449 new cars were registered in Northern Ireland in July compared to 5,010 in September 2020.

On a rolling year-to-date basis, sales were up by 7% from 28,189 by this point in 2020 to 30,247 in 2021.

The three most popular new models in September were the Nissan Qashqai, Volkswagen Golf and the Hyundai Tucson.