Jaguar Land Rover slips to £264m pre-tax loss driven by Brexit uncertainty
Luxury car business Jaguar Land Rover slipped to a £264 million pre-tax loss in the three months to the end of June as it was hit by uncertainty over Brexit and worries over diesels.
New figures from parent Tata Motors Group revealed the loss which compared to a £571m pre-tax profit in the same quarter of 2017-2018.
Revenue for JLR, which has its engine manufacturing centre at the i54 north of Wolverhampton, was down £377m or 6.7 per cent to £5.22 billion
JLR chief executive Dr Ralf Speth said the loss reflected the impact of the announcement of the duty reduction in China as well as planned dealer stock reduction in the quarter.
"We also continue to be impacted negatively by uncertainty over diesels in Europe along with Brexit and additional diesel taxes in the UK.
"Given these issues, we will remain focussed on driving growth an simultaneously reducing costs and boosting operational efficiency and capability, taking the necessary steps to shape our future," he said.
Dr Speth said JLR expected sales and financial results to improve over the remainder of the financial year, driven by continued ramp up of new models including the electric Jaguar I-Pace.
"We remain true to our pioneering spirit and ability to create innovative and exciting cars that our customers will love," he added.
Sales in the quarter grew 5.9 per cent to 145,510 on the year. Total investment in the period was £1.1 billion and the company plans to invest in the region of £4.5bn in the current financial year.
In June total JLR sales were 52,049, up 0.9 per cent on the same month last year. For the year to June they are 145,510, an increase of 5.9 per cent.
Monthly Land Rover sales were down 1.5 per cent at 35,721 with the Discovery Sport topping the figures at 8,692. For Jaguar sales rose 6.4 per cent to 16,328 with the F-Pace the top seller at 4,622 closely followed by the E-Pace at 4,525.
Overall sales in June were up 0.9 per cent in the UK and 7.4 per cent in North America, but down 9.5 per cent in China and 3.8 per cent in Europe.
JLR contributes nearly 90 percent to Tata Motors’ revenue and the parent group reported its worst loss in nearly nine years.
Tata chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran said JLR faced multiple challenges.
"Despite these challenges we remain committed to deliver the planned margins we outlined earlier this year and appreciate the urgency to address our challenges with speed," he said.
