Microchip woe drives Jaguar to £302m loss

JAGUAR Land Rover swung into the red as the global shortage of microchips hammered sales of almost every vehicle.

The car maker posted a loss of £302m for the quarter to September – compared to a profit of £65m in the same period a year earlier.

Turnover slid 11pc to £3.9bn as the company, which is based in Coventry but owned by India’s Tata Motors, saw the number of cars sold slide in every major region as it dealt with huge manufacturing backlogs. It sold 92,000 in the period, compared to 114,000 in the same three months of 2020.

Chip shortages have plagued car companies across the world after factories that made electronic components were forced to close for months on end during the pandemic.

Jaguar Land Rover said sales of every model other than the Land Rover Defender dropped during the quarter.

The semiconductor shortages ‘disproportionately’ affected its electric and hybrid cars, which is a key area the company is trying to focus on. The group also said it would pay £37m to electric car giant Tesla to pool carbon emissions.