Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has posted a pre-tax loss of £264 million for the first quarter of the 2018/2019 financial year.
The downturn, which includes a 6.7% drop in revenues over the same period last year, as well as a fall in wholesales, has been blamed by company boss Ralf Speth on market hesitance in China, following the import duty reduction announcement. The ongoing concerns around Brexit and the backlash against diesel were also pinpointed in Speth’s statement.
Speth said: “We had a pre-tax loss in the first quarter, reflecting the impact of the announcement of the duty reduction in China as well as planned dealer stock reductions 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.”
Speth has previously warned about Brexit, saying that in a worst-case scenario, the company would have to withdraw from the UK, given the additional costs a hard Brexit could necessitate.
Chinese customers are also likely to have stepped back from buying ahead of the country’s reduction in duty on foreign cars, effective from 1 July. The move reduces import duty from 25% to 10%.
Speth continued: “Given these issues, we will remain focused on driving growth and simultaneously reducing costs and boosting operational efficiency and capability, taking the necessary steps to shape our future. We expect sales and financial results to improve over the remainder of the financial year, driven by continued ramp-up of new models”. The reduced duty in China is also expected to boost sales post-July.
JLR's UK sales downturn across the first few calendar months of 2018 slowed in June, with the exact same number of Jaguars sold across the month compared with June 2017 and Land Rover sales falling by just 2.9%. Across the year to the end of June, Jaguar’s UK registration total was almost 11% down on 2017 and Land Rover’s was down more than 9%.
China makes up almost a quarter of JLR's total global sales.
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mmm, some commenst are really
mmm, some commenst are really stupid here, JLR can not make cars like they did 50 years, for one thing, it is illegal to do so, cars have to follow legislation, and have so many new things fitted by law, that these impact on cost, design and technology - as for the rubbish about it being in a worse position than ever, yeah right, thats why they sell over 600,000 cars a year, a massive leap on a decade ago, the E-Pace is a world beater, a number of reviews have rated it better than Tesla, the F-Pace is out selling ALL estimates, as are RR Evoque (Still), Disco Sport, Velar, RR Sport and D5 - They are building cars that the MAJORITY of people want - or would you prefer a car with seats as thin as a slice of bread with no comfort, no safety, that leaks, has ill fitting panels and so on, that was then. This is NOW.
Jaguar on the other hand, build a range of cars that are selling, yest UK sales are down, but thats due to p*** Poor government intervention and the lack of dealing with the diesel issue, just because VW screws it up for everyone, all brands are having to make changes, and for anyone to say the Ingenium engine range is rubbish, shows a total lack of knowledge at all, they are very economical, reliable and CO2 friendly, compared to some cars, it makes me laugh that a car thats so poor on CO2 pays less in taxation than a new car thats very clean, why not sort those out first, rather than berate perfectly good cars.
And Jaguar NEVER said they were going to make a coupe or estate version of the XE, so that argument is also irrelevant - we have two JLR products, both brilliant, both with no issues, and we have had nothing but awesome service from the two seperate dealers we bought them from, and as for servicing costs, well, for £600 we get three years servicing, free checks four times a year, unlimited adblue, and other fluids, free cleaning as and when we want it, we just turn up and its done, sont have to book it in for any other work, you do NOT get that with Volvo, or any other brand.
My dealer, even pays for our Lunch whenever we go over to them, cant ask better than that. I have other brands in the past and had dire service, JLR are superior on every front. And there is no way i would have an Isuzu, not after talking to the garage where they fix them all.
jonboy4969 wrote:
They're down worldwide. Only 2% in Jag's case, but that's with the new E-Pace, which being an entry-level SUV should be their biggest seller. 30% for Land Rover, with the Velar and new Discovery, which is very troubling indeed.
Not going to argue about diesel being the big issue though. Been saying this a lot elsewhere so won't labour the point, but there have been warning signs over diesel for years, and hybrids have been a less problematic alternative for at least a decade. Relying on diesel, which even at best only really favours Europe, looks short-sighted and a case of blindly following what the German brands are doing.
Vertigo wrote:
Yes, they have been copying the German manufacturers strategies from the mid 2000's, forgetting that they were at least 5 years too late in doing so and totally failing to predict, let alone set, the future for the market as a whole.
They've abandoned their brand values in pursuit of shameless copying and rampant cost cutting. I've been saying for several years that the success would be short lived and was built mostly on thin air. While I take no pleasure from being right, this latest development is the evidence that shows all is not well.
jonboy4969 wrote:
B@llock!
E-Pace AWD 2.0d 180bhp Auto9 £32370 - 163g/km 37% BIK tax.
BMW X1 Xdrive 2.0d 190bhp Auto8 £33040 126g/km 30% BIK tax.
Same size, BMW bit more power, both 4wd auto diesels, the E-pace is even newer design.
the Jag will cost a company car driver £1700 a year more tax, over 5 grand on a typical 3 year lease... and you thing the Ingenium is CO2 friendly? joke!
The Apprentice wrote:
I guess if one wants what is the best then one should be prepared to pay for it. If you cannot afford premium, then take the BMW but be prepared to accept that you are accepting the inferior product, that it will fail and that you are a failure.
You need to get a life.
You need to get a life.
Britain
Britain's car industry is broadly representative of Britain as a whole.
It has lost its identity, values and culture. Sold out to the highest bidder at the first opportunity. Changed beyond recognition by uninterested paper-pushers completely removed from the consequences of their decisions.
Such a sorry state of affairs.
The real reason
you are mostly wrong or missing the point, let me list the “facts”:
1- Jaguar products are subpar, especially the sedans, neither is competitive in their segments, the XE is tiny inside, the XF has a low rent interior, the XJ is just an also ran
2- the E-pace is too heavy and it has no uSP
3- the ingenium engines which were supposed to bring economies of scale are inferior to the competition
4- there is no point in spending billions on cars that do not have the potential to sell, i.e. F-type & XJ
the only positive for Jag is the J-pace which is unique, innovative and cool.
LR OTOH is successful IMO, once the Evoque is replaced the brand should experience further growth, only product in the range which is not quite there is the Discovery Sport, it is a missed opportunity, otherwise they have a good lineup of cars and the brand’s image is very good.
volvocu wrote:
My dearest friend, you state you are listing 'facts' this implies you have knowledge, you are clearly mistaken. I believe you meant to say, let me list my opinions on this subject matter. Now, of those 'opinions' what I can tell you with absolute certitude is that they are wrong.
1. The XE/XF are the premium offerings in their respective segements and are superior in every way to anything else available. Yes, the XJ is at the end of its model cycle and only now have competitors models got close to competing with it, as soon as the new model arrives it will be a leveller and simply cast aside the competition with ease.
2. The E-Pace is built to a standard that the competion can only dream of attaining.
3. The Ingenium family of engines are the pinnicle of combustion engine development, nothing else on the market comes close, nothing.
4. Jaguar have, in the F-Type a world beater and creating such an offering takes considerable investment. As described in point No 1 above, the XJ will be 'the' best offering in its respective class.
What I have presented above are 'facts' and I strngly suggest you take the time to read them, absorb the information within them and accept that your opinions are wrong.
@Rodester
Yeah, that’s why Jag is so f**in successful...