(LONDON, UK) – Jaguar Land Rover has reported a sharp drop in sales after a fire at a parts supplier and disruption linked to the conflict in the Middle East hit the supply of new vehicles. The company is the largest car manufacturer in Britain and is owned by India’s Tata Motors.
Revenues fell by 9.6 percent year on year to £6 billion for the three months to 30 June. The figure is equal to about $7.6 billion or €7 billion. Car volumes declined by 9.2 percent.
The company said revenues were also affected by the planned phase out of several Jaguar models. Car production was disrupted by a series of factors including a fire at a supplier’s factory.
JLR temporarily stopped production of its Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models at its Solihull plant in March. The halt followed a major fire at the factory of a component manufacturer in Norway.
Car sales volumes have also been affected by Jaguar’s decision to stop production of a number of diesel and petrol powered models including the F-Pace. Jaguar is shifting its focus towards electric models as part of a wider strategy to revive the brand.
PB Balaji is the chief executive of JLR. He said demand for the company’s brands remains strong despite near term industry challenges. He said the company looks forward to launching four new products in the coming months. These are the Range Rover Electric, Range Rover Sport Electric, Range Rover GT and Jaguar Type 01. Balaji thanked staff, suppliers and retail partners for their dedication, resilience and support.
JLR posted a pre tax profit of £109 million for the quarter excluding exceptional items. This is down from £351 million in the same period a year ago. The profit figure is equal to about $138 million or €127 million. The earlier profit is equal to about $445 million or €410 million.
Profit margins were further reduced by a one off provision tied to United States fuel economy rules. This partly offset the benefits of lower tariffs between the United States and the United Kingdom.