Auto Retail Agenda: 23 September 2024
22 September 2024
- EASTERN WESTERN IN £50m AGENCY HIT
- STRATSTONE STOCKTON ON SALE FOR £6m
- ROADSIDE GARAGES RAISES £20k FOR CHARITY
- EUROPE CALLS FOR ‘URGENT ACTION’ ON EVs…
- … BUT GERMAN MINISTER HINTS AT AID
- STOCKWATCH
- COMING UP
- CONSUMER CONFIDENCE TUMBLES IN AUGUST
Eastern Western reports £50m turnover drop due to agency
Eastern Holdings Ltd, the holding company for Eastern Western Motor Group, saw profit before tax fall from £24.9m to £18.9m in the year ended December 2023.
Turnover grew from £810m to £857m. The directors nevertheless pointed out that turnover is down £50m in the Mercedes-Benz division due to the shift to agency in January 2023. “We now receive a handling fee instead of invoicing the new vehicle”.
They said the overall reduction in profit was down to general inflationary pressures, along with the “substantial costs” with the development and opening of three new Toyota and one new Lexus retailers.
Overall, they said the group performed “particularly well in new vehicle sales, which increased by 21% mainly through corporate, fleet and Motability” – although this performance “adversely affected our nearly-new vehicles sales, which contributed to our total used volume reducing by 3.8%”.
Stratstone Stockton on sale for £6m
Stratstone Land Rover Stockton, on the Preston Farm Industrial Estate, is up for sale for £5,870,000. The purpose-built JLR retailers is described as an investment opportunity in a “dominant car dealership location”. The 24,780 sq ft site was constructed in 1990 and boasts 250 car spaces.
It is let to Reg Vardy (Property Management) Ltd. A spokesperson for Lithia UK confirmed that “the landlords have decided to sell”.
Roadside Garages raises £20k for charity
Roadside Garages in Coleraine, Northern Ireland, has raised almost £20k for Macmillan Cancer and Young Lives Versus Cancer in a tractor run and family fun day. It was to support marketing colleague Hilary Gault and her family, who received the news in February that their 9-year-old daughter had a malignant brain tumour and would need multiple surgeries.
Road-racing legend Michael Dunlop also attended the event, along with 500 people. “We couldn’t have asked for better,” said Roadside’s Ian Lamont.
WORLD NEWS
Europe calls for ‘urgent action’ on EVs…
ACEA, the trade body for European OEMs, has called on the EU for “urgent relief measures” before new CO2 targets come into force in 2025. It also wants the EC to bring forward a planned review of CO2 regulations from 2026 or 2027 to 2025.
“The current rules do not account for the profound shift in the geopolitical and economic climate over the past years, and the law’s inherent inability to adjust for real-world developments further erodes the competitiveness of the sector.”
The European car industry faces either multi-billion-euro fines, or unnecessary production cuts and job losses, states ACEA, which is “ready to discuss a package of short-term relief for the 2025 CO2 targets”.
… But German minister hints at aid
German economy minister Robert Habeck has hinted at additional support for German OEMs to address the sector’s challenges. He feels “an obligation to do something to get the market going again” after EV deliveries in Germany, Europe’s largest market, fell 69% in August. EV sales fell 36% across the EU.
The minister will hold talks with OEM executives today (Monday 23 September).
STOCKWATCH
Closing prices on 20 September 2024 and weekly change
Auto Trader Group 874.8p (+2.8p / +0.3%)
Caffyns 450.0p (n/c)
Halfords 150.0p (-0.4p / -0.2%)
Motorpoint 145.5p (-8.0p / -5.3%)
Pinewood 358.0p (+14.0p / +3.9%)
Vertu 62.7p (-3.5p / -5.4%)
COMING UP
No major announcements currently planned for this week
MONEY MATTERS
Consumer confidence tumbles in August
Government rhetoric around a “painful” budget has shaken consumer confidence with the GfK consumer confidence barometer falling further into negative territory in August. It had been improving but consumers’ perception of the general economic situation has now seen “major corrections”, or double-digit falls.
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