Demand for electric vehicles helped to drive a 15 percent rise in UK registrations in January, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).
Overall registrations rose to 131,994 units, the sixth month of continual growth and the best start to the year since January 2020, which was before the pandemic, the SMMT said.
Sales of full-electric vehicle registrations rose 20 percent to 17,294 in Janaury for a market share of 13.1 percent.
The UK market has been reeling from a cost-of-living squeeze in Britain that has been magnified by rising inflation and an ongoing shortage of chips that has hampered the auto industry.
Despite this, the SMMT remains bullish about 2023.
"The automotive industry is already delivering growth that bucks the national trend,” SMMT CEO Mike Hawes said in the statement.
SMMT expects an 11 percent rise in sales this year to 1.79 million, still well below 2019 levels. This is forecast to increase 9.3 percent in 2024 to 1.96 million.
