Vertu Motors has reported that it had performed strongly in H1 financial year, but said there remains uncertainty around vehicle supply and the macro-environment for consumers.
This, it said in a trading update, is likely to be affected by rising energy costs and inflation generally.
As a result, profitability is expected to be more weighted to H1, but the Board currently anticipates that trading performance for the full financial year will be in line with current market expectations.
The Group has reported that order bank levels for new vehicles remain high, with almost 13,000 new retail orders currently awaiting delivery and strong fleet and commercial order banks also in place.
Gross profit generation from the sale of new vehicles is ahead of last year, despite the decline in volumes, due to stronger margins.
The aftersales departments have delivered revenues ahead of prior year levels on a like-for-like basis.
On the costs front, operating expenses have increased year-on-year as a consequence of rising costs and the removal of Government support for business rates, which reduced costs in H1 2021 by £5.2m.