Used vehicle values have shown modest growth during the first quarter of 2008, although not every sector has improved over the last quarter of 2007.

According to BCA’s Pulse report on trends in the wholesale used car market, average fleet and lease values rose by just £116 to £6,688 during the first three months of 2008 from those recorded at the end of 2007 - a rise of 1.7%.

CAP performance improved by two points, average mileage at time of sale fell by around 1,750 miles while age remained relatively static.

“This gives further impetus to the view that there is an underlying softness in demand and while quarter one, 2008 as a whole showed improvement over the previous quarter, prices are in fact under a bit of pressure,” said BCA communications director, Tony Gannon.

“April and May values will perhaps give a better indicator of how the market may perform over the rest of 2008.”