British Car Factories Working Double Shifts

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18596, 5 January 1935, Page 9

British Car Factories Working Double Shifts

LONDON, Nov. 0. TITK motor industry faces the coming winter with a confidence born of full order books. The great factories at Oxford', Birmingham and Coventry are working at hill pressure, and will so continue for m.onths to come.

The industry has hail a run of amazing prosperity, and there are no signs yet that the peak has been reached. fn 19311 ear proditction reached new records. It was higher by 30 per cent, than in 1932, and 20 per cent, higher than in the "boom" year of 1925. For the 11 months up to the end of August this year production has exceeded even that record by 23 per cent., and the trade is so confident of the future that it is budgeting for sales in 1935 20 per cent, highei than those of 1934.

It finds justification for this optimism in the strength of the public demand for new cars not only during the Olympia show but during Ihe two mdnths preceding it. These are normally regarded by the trade as "dead" months, but for the first time on record more than 10,000 now cars were sold in August. Prom the point of view of the trade the Motor Show was a great success. Popular stories of fabulous "deals" in millions may be discounted, but more business was done with the Continent, and the public showed a gratifying desire to buy the larger and more expensive models. Great Business Done.

The business that is now keeping factories working double shifts was done before the Show, when the programmes for 1935 were announced by the makers. As an instance of this, when the Show opened orders had already been booked for nearly £8,000,000 worth of cars from the Humber-Hill-niaii factories. Considerable extensions are in active progress there, and •with the record demand now experienced this group of companies will soon be substantially increasing the number of their employees.

Morris.—The orders received since mid-August and inquiries during the Show are the best in the company's history. They represent a 50 per cent, increase in home sales over the same period of last year, while export sales in September -were (iO per cent, better than in September, 1933. All factories' are working at full pressure.

Austin.—Orders in hand for immediate delivery in the home market are larger by 72 per cent, than at this time last year. Export deliveries so far this year show .100 per cent, increase.

Standard. —Have already delivered over 4000 cars of the 1935 models since their announcement in August: compared with 65 during the same period last year. The company will be producing 150 ears a day dining the coming months. Several now overseas agencies were arranged during the Show.