New and used car sales to hit post-pandemic high
Auto Trader is predicting new and used car sales to grow 3.4% this year to a combined total of 10.17 million transactions.
This would make it the highest annual sales total since pre-pandemic 2019.
Growth is being driven by the new car market which is expected to increase to 2.21 million registrations this year, which equates to 9.5% year-on-year growth.
Meanwhile, the used car market is forecast to grow 1.9% year-on-year to 7.95 million transactions, which would be the highest volume since 2017.
Marc Palmer, head of strategy and insights at Auto Trader, said: “What’s particularly encouraging is that growth isn’t confined to one part of the market. New car registrations are recovering strongly but used car transactions are also increasing from what is already a very high base. That tells us the overall automotive market is growing, rather than new car demand simply taking sales away from the used market.
“New car buyers are benefiting from intense competition, attractive offers and greater consumer choice, while the used market continues to demonstrate its resilience despite an uneven supply picture.
“With cars continuing to sell quickly, car-buying intent remaining robust and wider consumer confidence improving, there are genuine reasons to be positive about the outlook for the remainder of 2026.”
