According to data from the Society of Vehicle Manufacturers and Traders, the number fell 24 per cent last month, declining to 133,475 units. As a result, the market has now dipped by 28.5 per cent since the start of the year, something that may be of interest to firms involved in finished vehicle distribution.

However, chief executive of the body Paul Everitt said that, despite April bringing the eleventh successive month of falls, the sector "continues to demonstrate its strength and resilience". "Despite the tough conditions, industry is hopeful that its prospects will improve in the coming months," he remarked, adding that the introduction of the car scrappage scheme could help to restore sales.

Earlier this week, industry body Glass's predicted that the average value of used vehicles will continue to rise throughout 2009.
GEFCO UK moved over 475,000 vehicles in 2008 and in addition to this imported 238,000 vehicles through combined multimodal operations; 80% by sea, 15% by rail and just 5% by road