Car buyers desert the showrooms

By Sean O'Grady, Economics editor The credit crisis skidded out of the finance sector and careered into the real economy last month, leaving September's new car sales figures something of a mangled wreck. With the new "58" registration plate, September should have been a bumper month for the garage trade. Instead, private car sales slid by 23 per cent compared with September 2007, as a collapse in consumer confidence and a squeeze on bank lending saw buyers postpone the purchase of new vehicles. As the ultimate "large ticket" consumer durable, and with most purchases made out of choice rather than necessity, the motor trade is peculiarly vulnerable to a consumer slowdown. Fleet sales fared slightly better, leaving the overall car market down 21 per cent, and 7 per cent lower in the year to date. The Society of Motor... [read full story]