Despite the negative news surrounding the economic and political landscape, the JudgeService Dealer Barometer notes dealers have higher levels of business and consumer confidence in Q2 than at the start of the year.
The number of franchised dealers feeling positive about their Q2 business performance had jumped from 37% in Q1 to half, according to the JudgeService Dealer Barometer which polled the views of over 2,000 retailers.
Neil Addley, managing director of JudgeService, said: “Our latest Dealer Barometer shows the resilience of franchised and independent car retailers who can look beyond the noise and negativity of what is currently a relentless daily news cycle to focus on what they do best: source and sell cars.
“This dogged termination to get on with the job has resulted in higher levels of confidence going into Q2 than they expressed about Q1.”
Those feeling neutral about their prospects dropped from 43% to 22%, although those feeling negative had risen from 20% to 28%.
Independent dealers positivity rose from 29% to 38%, with negative rates more than halving from 43% to 19%. Although those waiting to see jumped from 29% to 44%.
Dealers’ views on consumer confidence also improved, especially among independent dealers which increased from 24% to 38%. Dealers were also less neutral (31%) and less negative (31%) than in Q1.
Franchised dealer positivity went up from 38% to 39%. However, those feeling negative were also at 39%, increasing from 19% in Q1.
