³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

One hundred and forty four new cars were sold in Northern Ireland in May, according to figures compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

It was a slight recovery on April 2020 when just 24 new cars were sold.

Car show rooms remained closed in May as a result of the coronavirus, with sales reflecting vehicles which had been on order or online purchases.

They are due to reopen in Northern Ireland on Monday.

The 144 new registrations in May means sales were down 97% on the same month last year.

In the UK as a whole, only 20,000 new cars were registered in May - down 89% year-on-year - in the worst May performance since 1952.

It comes as car dealerships Lookers and Aston Martin announce 2,000 job cuts.

Lookers, which has announced it will cut up to 1,500 jobs with the closure of more showrooms in the UK, reopened its showrooms in England on Monday after the government lifted coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

Lookers owns the Charles Hurst business in Northern Ireland but the impact on it is not yet clear.

Lookers employs 1,100 people in Northern Ireland across 42 sites.

The company says 12 of its sites across the UK have been earmarked for closure, but has not clarified which outlets will be closing.

Chief executive Mark Raban, said: "We have taken the decision to restructure the size of the group's dealership estate to position the business for a sustainable future, which regrettably means redundancy consultation with a number of our colleagues."