As domestic sales slow, manufacturers are investing in AI and seeking growth in technology and in overseas markets

At the world’s biggest car fair, which opened in Beijing on Friday, there were hundreds of manufacturers, more than 1,000 vehicles, hundreds of thousands of enthusiasts – and hardly anyone behind a wheel.

China’s car companies have cornered the domestic electric vehicle market, and are increasingly visible on the global stage. Now they are turning their attention to what they are betting is the future of mobility: autonomous driving.

ONS says sales rose by 0.7% in March, spurred by motorists filling their tanks and sunny weather helping retailers

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Motorists stocking up on fuel helped to push up retail sales in Great Britain last month as the Iran war prompted “panic at the pumps” amid rapid rises in petrol and diesel prices.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that the volume of retail sales rose by 0.7% last month, well above analysts’ forecasts of just 0.1%.

Annual March rate shows impact of Iran war, which also pushed up cost of food and air fares

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UK inflation accelerated to 3.3% in March after the Iran war triggered the biggest jump in fuel prices for more than three years.

In the first official snapshot of the damage to living standards in Britain from the US-Israeli war on Iran, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the consumer prices index increased last month from a rate of 3% in February. The rise matched the forecasts by City economists.

Data shows 224,000 new EVs were registered in March, with Norway leading way in terms of switching

Sales of electric cars soared 51% in continental Europe last month, amid a rise in petrol and diesel costs driven by the Iran war.

Data shows that 224,000 new electric vehicles (EVs) were registered in March, and 500,000 across the first three months of the year – a 33.5% increase on a year earlier, according to analysis of national sales data in 15 countries by New AutoMotive and E-Mobility Europe, a trade body.