While scrappage orders finally bore some fruit in the July new car market (up 2.4%), fleet registrations continued to fall.

Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that 157,149 new cars were sold in the UK last month - a 2.4% rise on the same month last year. Scrappage sales contributed 21% to the month's total. However, for the year to date sales are still down by 22.8%.

But in fleet the decline continued, with July falling 18%. For the year to date, fleet is down nearly 28%. For business sales to companies operating 25 vehicles or fewer, July was up slightly (0.4%) but for the year to date registrations are down 34.6%.

The SMMT has revised its estimates for the full year, increasing it slightly to 1.825 million units thanks to the success of the scrappage scheme. However, it predicts 2010's market will be 1.73 million units.