By Katrina Nicholas
Jaguar Land Rover, the British luxury car brand owned by India’s Tata Motors Ltd., expects free cash flow of around £500 million for the full fiscal year.
While that’s half the £1bn-plus forecast it returned in 2022, it significantly beats a more recent estimate as the supply chain snarls that hit business in Q2 subsided.
JLR missed expectations in the second quarter but beat its second-half guidance for both volume and cash flow compared with what was forecast in November 2022 as chip supply gradually improved, a report said. email spokesperson.
The global shortage of semiconductors has undermined the recovery of the luxury automaker as it struggles to work on a debt reduction plan. While JLR has ramped up production of its Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models, it is still feeling the pinch of the chip shortage that has plagued the entire industry for the past two years.
In November, the loss-making automaker said it was cutting production of UK-built Range Rover Velar and Jaguar F-Pace models to focus on higher-margin models.
Tata Motors also said on Thursday when it issued fourth-quarter sales guidance that JLR’s preliminary estimated cash balance was more than £3.7bn at March 31, while net debt was around £3bn.
JLR’s retail sales rose 30% from a year earlier to 102,889 units in the fourth quarter, while wholesale sales, excluding its China joint venture, rose 24% year-on-year to 94,649 units. The automaker’s order book remains strong at 200,000 units, Tata Motors said.
First posted: 07 Apr 2023 | 17:25 IS
