June engine production struggles to recover

• UK factories made 157,623 engines in June, just 0.6% more than June 2020’s weak performance.
• June 2021 output down -30.9% on five-year average for the month.¹
• First-half production rises 15.3% yet remains -31.5% below pre-pandemic levels.²

Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said,

Despite seeing a marginal rise on a weak month in 2020, June’s engine output remains significantly below the pre-pandemic average for the month. Likewise, it has been a challenging first half year, with engine output struggling to recover to pre-Covid levels. The global shortage of semiconductors has hit vehicle manufacturers, and in turn engine production, with firms now also having to battle staff shortages due to workers being ‘pinged’. The government must take urgent action to address this issue, including bringing forward plans to exempt fully vaccinated adults from self-isolation from 16 August and introducing a “test to release” scheme to support those employees not yet fully vaccinated.

Notes to editors

1 2015-2019 average for June is 228,152 units
2 2015-2019 average for first half year is 1,371,161 units