E-Paper
JLR hits speed breaker, sales dip 34% on weak China demand
Jaguar Land Rover said they were disappointed by the lower sales in China, but decided not to push sales ‘at any cost’ to ensure that their brands remain desirable.
Tata-owned Jaguar Land Rover’s overall sales during 2018-19 were down 5.8% compared to previous fiscal, mainly due to weak demand in China, which declined by 34.1%, new figures released by the company on Monday show.
JLR’s retail sales during the year were 578,915 vehicles. It introduced the all-electric Jaguar I-PACE and saw sales of Jaguar E-PACE, Range Rover Velar and the refreshed Range Rover and Range Rover Sport ramp up, but this was offset by continuing weakness in China.
The company said retail sales were up significantly in North America (up 8.1%), which marked its best ever full fiscal year and ninth consecutive year of growth. Volumes were also up in the UK (up 8.4%) and in overseas markets (up 2.4%).
Felix Brautigam, chief commercial officer, said: “Despite a challenging time for us and the automotive industry, we were able to deliver growth in three of our five regions. In North America, the UK and Overseas we posted solid growth on the back of strong demand for our exciting product line-up, achieving record sales and outpacing industry trends in many markets.”
“Clearly we were disappointed by the lower sales in China. However, together with our retailers we decided not to push sales ‘at any cost’ to ensure that our brands remain desirable. Mid-term we remain optimistic about the region, particularly as we are starting to see results of our local turnaround strategy, with retails expected to stabilise in the next few months and grow thereafter.”
