Weeks after reporting a record year for sales, automaker Jaguar Land Rover sends another record tumbling with best-ever first quarter revenues of £7.3bn. Tony McDonough reports
Records keep tumbling at Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) as it reports record first quarter revenues of £7.3bn for the three months to June 30.
In early July JLR said full-year revenues for the 12 months to March 31, 2024, had come in at a record £29bn. And sustained demand for its vehicles has seen that momentum continue into the new fiscal year.
JLR operates the Halewood factory in Merseyside where more than 3,500 workers assemble the Range Rover, Evoque and the Land Rover Discovery Sport. It has pledged a £15bn investment to create a new generation of electric vehicles.
There are also assembly plants at Castle Bromwich and Solihull in the West Midlands as well as at locations in China, India and Brazil. UK-based JLR is owned by Indian conglomerate Tata.
It said its “positive momentum” in the first quarter was driven by higher wholesale volumes, investment in demand generation and a favourable pricing environment.
However, the company warned of “constrained production” in the second and third quarters reflecting the annual summer plant shutdown and floods at a key aluminium supplier.
Profit before tax and exceptional items in the quarter was £693m, up from £435m a year ago. Higher profitability year‑on‑year reflects favourable volume, mix and material cost improvements, offset partially by increased marketing spend compared to a year ago.
JLR chief executive Adrian Mardell said: “Thanks to the hard work and commitment of our people, JLR has delivered an outstanding set of results in the first quarter, with record revenues and an increase in year‑on‑year quarterly profits of nearly 60%.
“We are making great progress delivering our Reimagine strategy. Our Jaguar TCS Racing Formula E Team, pioneers in electric technology innovation, are winners of this year’s ABB FIA Formula E Team and Manufacturer’s World Championships.
“We are bringing the lessons learned from this success on the racetrack to our luxury electric vehicles and later this year we will unveil our first next generation luxury electric vehicle, Range Rover Electric, which has more than 41,000 customers on its waiting list.”