26 September 2016

One last push. That’s what they all say this time of the year. As we near the end of September, all eyes will predictably be on the sales you’ve managed to achieve. Against a backdrop of Brexit, interest rate cuts and general economic uncertainty, those SMMT figures can’t come soon enough.

If recent months are anything to go by, September could be a good month. Various general retail and economic surveys have concluded that consumer confidence has remained high in recent months. If that’s true, it should be evident in your sales data. Of course, it would be foolish to take all this positive talk to heart; if you believe some of the recent retailer-focused research it could go either way – there appears to be as many thinking September 2016 will trump this time last year as trail it.

One thing’s for sure, thanks to the recent round of political and economic instability, we’re unlikely to experience something similar for quite a while. Hopefully the relative calm of the months ahead should allow everyone to take a breath and plan. Although the real panic might set in when Brexit really does mean Brexit. Sorry, I guess I’ve just revealed myself to be one of those ‘glass half empty’ guys. Roll on October.

Iain Dooley

Editor, Agenda

Auto Retail Network

Tags: New car registrations, registration, September