1pm plc (“1pm”), the AIM-listed independent specialist provider of finance facilities to UK SMEs, has supported its first client under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). Lowton Motor Company Limited, a family-run car dealership, secured the £150,000 CBILS loan to drive the business through the covid-19 crisis and beyond. Incorporated in 2012, Lowton Motor […]
CitySwift, a leader in big data and machine learning for the public transport sector, has closed a funding round of €2m, bringing funding to date to €3.5m. The round was led by Irelandia Investments and Act Venture Capital, along with other notable transportation investors and entrepreneurs. All investors have been involved in both of CitySwift’s […]
The harsh reality of the Covid crisis for the UK’s £18.6bn automotive sector is laid bare today by a new member survey from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) revealing that up to one in six jobs are at risk of redundancy. With a third of automotive workers still furloughed, the end of […]
During a week of high-level political negotiations, the prime minister and his EU counterparts have agreed to accelerate negotiations on a future trading relationship, injecting a renewed momentum into the talks. Securing a comprehensive trade deal by 31 December that delivers zero tariffs from day one and creates a new framework for regulatory cooperation and […]
As week two of England’s auto retail restart draws to a close, reports suggest a promising uplift in consumer interest in new cars, although of course it is still too early to tell whether this will translate into meaningful sales volumes over the days, weeks and months ahead. As the picture becomes clearer, the case […]
Around the globe, the take-up of electric cars is expected to accelerate rapidly in future, driven by consumer demand and government policies aimed at tackling climate change. The future of mobility is clearly electric, but the transition will lead to a fundamental change in risk for manufacturers, suppliers and insurers alike and will have a […]
Road tanker specialist Abbey Logistics Group has ordered 52 tractor units from DAF and Mercedes Benz. The order follows a “significant improvement in financial performance, despite Covid-19”. CEO Steve Granite said “Performance in the current financial year to June 2020 has seen a major improvement on previous years and a return to profitability since earlier […]
Figures published this week by SMMT showed the UK new car market in freefall for a second month running, with registrations down -89.0% in May, as lockdown continued to take its toll. There were 20,247 new cars registered in total, amounting to some 163,477 fewer than the same month last year, making this the worst […]
In terms of its contribution to the UK economy, the wholesale, retail, maintenance and repair elements of the automotive industry are worth around £36 billion a year (SMMT figure) and could serve as a kick-starter for the wider economy. Ford’s dealer network accommodates roughly 1.2 million customer visits in a “normal” year – many of […]
The latest production figures, released today by SMMT, highlight just how devastating coronavirus has been for the UK automotive sector. Over the course of April, car manufacturing plummeted by -99.7%, with just 197 units made, the lowest level seen since World War Two. All of the cars that left factory gates in the month were […]
