The latest data released by the motorcycle industry trade association in the UK (MCIA) shows that new motorcycle registrations there for December were up by +14.33 percent (4,556 units - the best December figure in the UK for nearly a decade) and +15.59 percent for the year (104,813 units).
In total PTW terms, December was +16.68 percent (5,177 units), and the total PTW market in the UK was +12.72 percent for the year (114,160 units). Total moped sales in the UK were down by -11.8 percent in 2015 (10,598 units).
The 'Naked' style (+26.9 percent/30,108 units) and Adventure Sport sectors (+26.8 percent/16,653 units) were the strongest growth markets in the UK in 2015, with traditional Touring models the primary loser in the UK in 2015 (15.7 percent). Custom style bikes were up by +14.1 percent (9,270 units) for the year in the UK, with Supersport models +11.6 percent for the year (13,320 units) and trails/enduro style models +13.3 percent (5,581 units).
In displacement terms, as elsewhere in Europe, the fastest growing sector of the market in the UK is the 'middleweight' 651 - 1000cc market, which was +24.9 percent in 2015. Scooter sales in the UK (31,570 units) were basically 'flat' in 2015 at +0.9 percent.
Honda were market share leaders in the UK in December, selling 918 units; followed by Yamaha, Lexmoto, BMW, KTM, Kawasaki, Triumph, Piaggio, Suzuki and Ducati.
The UK 'bike park' is now said to stand at 1.2 million units - a figure that has remained largely static since 2011; 34,600 people passed the motorcycle rider test in the UK in 2014/15 - which is some 4,000 more than in the previous 12 months, and the MCIA says that some 4.6 billion km (2.8 billion miles) were ridden on two wheels on the roads in the UK in 2014 - a figure that has remained largely static since 2011.
