FTSE 250 merchant bank Close Brothers has launched a £400m capital plan to strengthen its balance sheet amid the FCA review into car finance. Close Brothers has by far the most car finance exposure,...

EXCLUSIVE: HYUNDAI PLANS NETWORK RESTRUCTURE CLOSE BROTHERS’ £400m FCA FIGHTING FUND USED CAR DEALER CLOSES OWNING £430k NETWORKS REPORT NOW ON SALE MERCEDES DEFENDS GERMAN RETAILER SALE CARVANA...

Despite economic uncertainty, rising costs and business challenges, motor retailers are still looking to invest in their forecourts this year, according to Close Brothers Motor Finance’s Forecourt...

After a modest uplift in September, which itself followed a significant downward swing in August, retail registrations were all but flat in October, showing a rise of just 0.3% compared with the same...

The Government’s decision to delay the petrol and diesel ban won’t have come as a surprise to retailers given that 85% of them didn’t think it would go ahead as planned anyway. That’s...

Retail registrations fell 8.1% in August compared with the same month last year (in what was a supply-constrained market), while at the same time fleet registrations surged over 58%. The result was a...

New car registrations jumped 18.2% in March compared with the same month in 2022, but the picture of the first quarter remains one where the bulk of the growth is in fleet, with private registrations...

UK new vehicle registrations surged ahead in February, rising 26.2% compared with the same month in 2022. But the vast bulk of the growth came in the fleet market, up 46.2%, while retail registrations...

December saw battery electric vehicles claim their largest ever monthly market share, of 32.9%, while for 2022 as a whole they comprised 16.6% of registrations, surpassing diesel for the first time to...

In a strange set of October registrations figures, the continuation of September’s prioritisation of fleet by the OEMs was the least of the surprises. Perhaps more so was the strength of the...

Retail new car registrations in January were up 64.1% compared with the same month in 2021, with 62,300 new vehicles registered. This accounted for 54.1% of all registrations, with the fleet market...

Another tough month for the automotive sector saw registrations fall 34.4% compared with September 2021. Retailers report that consumer demand is strong and order books are healthy, but the chip...

With the new car market having found a small sweet spot of pent-up demand, the SMMT has raised its forecast for the year to 1.86 million units by the end of the year, up 13.9% on the end of the year....

The headline figure for March registrations might be one of overall growth, with the total up 11.5% over the same month in 2020, but the retail element within that total was down by 4.1%. And the...

Lockdown has seen another poor month for registrations, depressing the market ahead of the crucial March plate-change. Retail registrations were down 37.3% in February compared with the same month...

Retail registrations rose a modest 0.4% in October, but retailers will surely have been hoping for more given that October 2019 was itself a weak month. The market wasn’t helped by the...

Commentators are bemoaning the weakest ever ‘new plate’ September following a 4.4% drop in new car registrations, but the true picture is rarely as simplistic as the headlines. It should be noted...

As registrations of alternative fuelled vehicles (AFVs) surge, new research from Close Brothers Motor Finance finds that 32% of UK drivers are planning to buy an AFV as their next car purchase. A...

The headline figures for registrations in August might on the surface look disappointing, with the month finishing 5.8% down compared with 2019. But the retail element of those registrations was down...

Retail registrations rose over 20% in July compared with the same month last year, bringing welcome relief to retailers after June’s tentative restart. Fleet registrations were also up, by a more...