Economic growth in a number of Asian markets such as China has led to a higher demand for luxury vehicles from the UK. According to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), 137,410 UK-built cars were exported to China in 2014, an increase of 14.5 per cent over 2013.
The trend in China has led to a substantial growth in the wider Asian market, with the number of UK-built cars exported to Asia having more than trebled in five years. In 2014, the UK exported 220,682 cars to the region, compared to 60,804 in 2009.
Thanks to the presence of many premium brands including Aston Martin, Bentley, Jaguar Land Rover and Rolls-Royce, Asia is now the UK automotive industry’s largest export market after Europe, with 18.5 per cent of all cars destined for the region; having said that, export volumes are still modest in a number of Asian markets with the majority of countries including India enforcing high import duty to drive local production.
