Jaguar Land Rover recorded 6% growth in revenue and a 1.7% increase in retail sales in the tax year ended 31 March, despite being hit hard by a heavy downturn in domestic demand.
Global sales totalled 614,309 cars for the tax year — a new high for the company. However, British sales tumbled by 12.8% and European demand was down by 5.3%.
JLR CEO Ralf Speth said that it was strong demand in key overseas market that “offset the challenging conditions in the UK and other parts of Europe”.
Much of the global increase can be attributed to China, where sales were up 19.9% year on year. North American sales also rose 4.7% in the 12 months.
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Of its models, JLR said the new Land Rover Discovery and Range Rover Velar were key contributors to growth, while the Jaguar E-Pace and China-only Jaguar XFL were among that brand’s best sellers.
The UK’s biggest car maker’s revenue totalled £25.8 billion in the 12 months to 31 March, generating £1.5bn of pre-tax profit.
Speth highlighted that financial growth came at a time the brand continues with “over-proportional investment in new vehicles, manufacturing facilities and next-generation automotive technologies in line with our Autonomous, Connected, Electric and Shared strategy”.
JLR invested £4.2bn into new technologies during the year, with a portion of this focused on the development of its first electric car, the I-Pace. The firm also said it funded the building of new R&D facilities, as well as the upgrading of existing sites. Construction of its new plant in Nitra, Slovakia, will have required substantial investment.
During the current tax year, £450 million is being invested at JLR’s Gaydon Design and Engineering Centre to upgrade the facility into a central hub. JLR will also open a software engineering centre in Shannon, Ireland, that will support the electrification of JLR models and develop self-driving technology.
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It's really simple
This downward pattern is now emerging for a few very simple and predictable reasons:
1.) Trying to push for volume with two brands that were never volume brands in the first place.
2,) Expanding the model range too quickly and having to compromise the engineering and quality to do so.
3.) Betting the farm on diesel and missing the market change towards hybrid and electric when it was predictable at least 5 years ago.
4.) Destroying brand value by dumbing down Jaguar styling and interior quality and blurring the lines between Land Rover and Range Rover.
5.) Upsetting loyal customers due to the above.
6.) Building the cars out of crap materials, poorly assembled and then charging extremely high prices for them.
Basically, bad strategy - as has long been pointed out by many who understand the long term nature of business.
hackjo wrote:
Bad strategy, that resulted in a company producing 100-200,000 car pa to >600,000 cars pa, becoming the UK's largest car exporter, become a major employer in the Midlands, and be singularly responsible for bringing the UK Auto industry back? If so, lets hope we can replicate this success in other sectors of the economy.
JLR is not the only manufacturer that is suffering because of a downtrun in car sales, nor is it the only only suffering becuase of a backlash in diesel. Whilst they nmay have been slow off the group in relation to hybrids, they seem to have embraced full electrification with the I-Pace, and the next XJ. As I see it, the next decade or so will see us transition to electric propulsin systems, and the battle for sales will be won on the basis of how competent the Electric and Hybrid offerings will be. That appears to the the raison d'etre of Lexus these days. JLR will need to get there quite quickly.
Brexit LOL
So revenues are up outside of the EEC (Including UK), what does that tell you about Brexit? Autocar is up there with the rest of the British Media bemoaning what a terrible thing it is that we are divorcing our European "cousins" and yet, here it is, for all to see an INCREASE in revenue from the Rest of the World.
It's about time this nation appreciated the talent it has and go back to being patriotic and supportive of what we have to offer the world.
Somebody else (obviously not me, for legal reasons) may say BUGGER the EU. That, naturally, would be a homophobic comment as well as probably a hate-crime in turning our backs on the corrupt Socialist Republic of Europe.
Bugger the EU
The Home Office know where to find me.
It is funny how whatever the
It is funny how whatever the subject, ranters always attribute everything to just one thing, and only see what they want to see to justify theselves.