🔗 Share this article

Aston Martin has blamed a profit warning to US-imposed trade duties, while simultaneously urging the British authorities for greater active assistance.

The company, producing its cars in Warwickshire and south Wales, lowered its profit outlook on Monday, marking the another revision in the current year. The firm expects a larger loss than the previously projected £110 million deficit.

Seeking Government Support

The carmaker expressed frustration with the British leadership, telling shareholders that while it has communicated with officials from both the UK and US, it had productive talks with the American government but needed greater initiative from British officials.

It urged UK officials to safeguard the needs of small-volume manufacturers like Aston Martin, which create thousands of jobs and contribute to regional finances and the wider British car industry network.

Global Trade Effects

The US President has shaken the worldwide markets with a tariff conflict this year, significantly affecting the automotive industry through the imposition of a 25 percent duty on 3rd April, on top of an previous 2.5 percent charge.

During May, American and British leaders reached a deal to limit duties on 100,000 UK-built vehicles per year to 10 percent. This rate came into force on 30th June, coinciding with the last day of the company's second financial quarter.

Trade Deal Criticism

However, the manufacturer expressed reservations about the trade deal, arguing that the implementation of a US tariff quota mechanism introduces further complexity and limits the company's ability to accurately forecast financial performance for the current fiscal year-end and possibly quarterly from 2026 onwards.

Additional Challenges

Aston Martin also cited reduced sales partly due to greater likelihood for supply chain pressures, particularly following a recent digital attack at a leading British car producer.

UK automotive sector has been rattled this year by a cyber-attack on the country's largest automotive employer, which led to a manufacturing halt.

Market Response

Shares in the company, listed on the LSE, fell by more than 11% as markets opened on Monday at the start of the week before partially rebounding to be down 7%.

Aston Martin sold one thousand four hundred thirty vehicles in its Q3, missing previous guidance of being broadly similar to the one thousand six hundred forty-one vehicles delivered in the same period the previous year.

Upcoming Initiatives

The wobble in sales comes as Aston Martin gears up to release its flagship hypercar, a rear-engine supercar costing approximately £743,000, which it expects will boost profits. Deliveries of the car are expected to start in the final quarter of its fiscal year, though a forecast of approximately one hundred fifty units in those final quarter was lower than previous expectations, due to engineering delays.

The brand, well-known for its appearances in James Bond films, has initiated a review of its future cost and spending plans, which it indicated would probably lead to reduced capital investment in R&D compared with earlier forecasts of approximately £2 billion between its 2025 to 2029 financial years.

The company also told investors that it no longer expects to achieve profitable cash generation for the second half of its present fiscal year.

The government was approached for a statement.