Jaguar Land Rover will cut prices more than expected after the effects of the coronavirus pandemic in the first quarter of its fiscal year.
Indian-owned automaker Tata Motors Ltd. raised its savings target for the year to 2.5 billion pounds ($3.3 billion) after recording a tax loss of 413 million pounds for the quarter ending in June. While the company said it expects a slow improvement in sales, profitability and money flow, it warned that its outlook remains “very uncertain” due to covid-19.
JLR is already grappling with declining sales, Brexit uncertainty, tighter emissions regulations and declining exports to China, one of its largest markets, before the fitness crisis hit. It is now adding a billion pounds to cost-cutting efforts to consolidate profits after measures to involve the spread of the virus forced the closure of factories and showrooms around the world.
This week, the automaker named former Renault CHIEF Executive Sa Thierry Bolloré as its next executive leader, succeeding Ralf Speth. Bolloré, 57, became the Wisest of the French corporation after the arrest in 2018 of former executive leader Carlos Ghosn in 2018, but overthrew when tensions with his wife Nissan Motor Co. peaked last October.
After taking thousands of jobs, JLR said last month that it would cut capital spending by about 25%. Speth, who has been CEO for the past decade, also reported symptoms of a recovery in sales in China. The company’s joint venture reached the breaking point last quarter.
“We are positive about how China is accelerating in terms of overall sales volume,” P.B. said. Balaji, the leading monetary director of Tata Motors Group, told reporters Friday. “While JLR’s liquidity is strong and its debt repayment program is extended, the company continues to talk about financing issues with the UK government,” he said.
Tata Motors cut its investment in JLR by $4 billion last year. Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the parent company’s credit rating last month and has a negative view of the companies.