Jaguar Land Rover production passes half million mark

Coventry-based Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) consolidated its position as Britain's largest car builder Tuesday by announcing it produced more than half a million vehicles for the first time in the past year.

In its annual report, JLR said in the full year to March 31, 2016, it built a record 521,571 vehicles, a 13 percent rise over the previous year.

JLR's CEO Dr Ralf Speth said: "Jaguar Land Rover has produced and sold more cars than at any time in our history. We are now the largest automotive manufacturer in the United Kingdom and our vehicles have received more than 140 awards across the range for design, technology, safety and environmental sustainability."

"During this fiscal year, we have delivered sustainable, profitable growth and introduced new models -- such as the Discovery Sport, Jaguar XE and XF -- that have redefined their market segments," he added.

JLR says it plans to invest 3.75 billion pounds (5.49 billion U.S. dollars) during 2016-17.

The company said solid growth in markets including Europe, North America and Britain helped support full-year financial revenues of 22.2 billion pounds, up 342 million pounds on the previous 12-month period.

Profit before tax was 1.56 billion pounds after an exceptional charge for the Tianjin Port explosion of 157 million pounds.

The report says the generally positive outlook for the global premium automotive market and the forthcoming launches of Jaguar Land Rover vehicles are expected to support the growth of the company in the future. Enditem