Latest news with #Adrian Hallmark
The Guardian
30-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Guardian
Aston Martin's 24-hour scramble to get lower US tariffs pays off
Aston Martin scrambled to deliver three months' worth of cars to dealers in the US within 24 hours as it rushed to qualify for lower tariffs that came into effect on 30 June. By invoicing the whole quarter's cars on that same day it avoided having to report a sales slump that might have alarmed investors. The operation may not have matched the drama of the James Bond films that have long featured the brand, but it 'was quite exciting, to put it mildly', said Adrian Hallmark, Aston Martin's chief executive. Donald Trump has shaken the global economy with a trade war, causing a particular stir in the car industry with his imposition of a 25% tariff on 3 April on top of an existing 2.5% levy. Germany's Mercedes-Benz said on Wednesday Trump's border taxes would cost it about €360m (£311m) this year, while the sportscar-maker Porsche said it had taken a €400m hit from the levies in the first half of the year. However, in early May, the US president and Keir Starmer agreed a deal to limit tariffs on 100,000 British-made cars per year to 10%. That rate came into force at one minute past midnight on 30 June, the final day of the second financial quarter. Aston Martin Lagonda manufactures all its cars in factories in Gaydon, Warwickshire, and St Athan, south Wales. It shipped 328 cars to dealers in the Americas between April and June but the majority were sent on 30 June. It was a 'mammoth task', Hallmark said. 'This left us with 24 hours to invoice the entire quarter's-worth of vehicle sales in the US.' The one-day scramble illustrates the tariff turmoil causing headaches for goods exporters around the world. Aston Martin revealed that it had raised prices for US customers by 3% to absorb some of the hit from the border taxes. Getting the cars to dealers early would have meant a big financial blow from absorbing the higher tariff rate, while late arrivals that missed the quarter-end would have meant reporting a big slump in sales. So Aston Martin decided to send hundreds of cars to bonded warehouses in the US – where goods can be stored without being subject to tariffs – before delivery firms raced to get them all to dealers before the end of day on 30 June. Those cars attracted the 10% rate, rather than 27.5%. Other carmakers face higher costs. The EU reached a deal with the US to cut tariffs on most goods including cars to 15%. Mercedes-Benz boss Ola Källenius said he did not expect any improvement on that for the car industry, despite lobbying for a lower rate from Germany's carmakers. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Aston Martin also said it had cut production and limited exports to the US to try to limit the financial impact. Even after its 30 June operation, Aston Martin could still be hit later in the year when it launches its million-dollar Valhalla, a mid-engine hypercar that it hopes will be a major contributor to profits. However, it is worried that the quota of 100,000 cars covered by the 10% tariff could be used up before it can get the Valhalla to dealers – potentially adding more than £100,000 to the price if importers must pay the 27.5% rate. British companies exported just over 100,000 cars to the US last year, with the bulk being Range Rovers shipped by JLR. The quota could mean an end-of-year race between British carmakers to get their vehicles into the country, with 'pressure on the number of slots available on the 100,000 quota', Hallmark said.
The Guardian
30-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Guardian
Aston Martin's 24-hour scramble to get lower US tariffs pays off
Aston Martin scrambled to deliver three months' worth of cars to dealers in the US within 24 hours as it rushed to qualify for lower tariffs that came into effect on 30 June. By invoicing the whole quarter's cars on that same day it also avoided having to report a sales slump that might have alarmed investors. The operation may not have matched the drama of the James Bond films that have long featured the brand, but it 'was quite exciting, to put it mildly', said Adrian Hallmark, Aston Martin's chief executive. Donald Trump has shaken the global economy with a trade war, causing particular pain in the car industry with his imposition of a 25% tariff on 3 April on top of an existing 2.5% levy. Germany's Mercedes-Benz said on Wednesday Trump's border taxes would cost it about €360m (£311m) this year, while the sportscar maker Porsche said it had taken a €400m hit from the levies in the first half of the year. However, in early May the US president and Keir Starmer agreed a deal to limit tariffs on 100,000 British-made cars per year to 10%. That rate came into force at one minute past midnight on 30 June, the final day of the second financial quarter. Aston Martin Lagonda manufactures all its cars in factories in Gaydon, Warwickshire, and St Athan, south Wales. It shipped 328 cars to dealers in the Americas between April and June but the majority were only sent on 30 June. It was a 'mammoth task', Hallmark said. 'This left us with 24 hours to invoice the entire quarter's worth of vehicle sales in the US.' The one-day scramble illustrates the tariff turmoil causing headaches for goods exporters around the world. Aston Martin revealed that it had raised prices for US customers by 3% to absorb some of the hit from the border taxes. Getting the cars to dealers early would have meant a big financial blow from absorbing the higher tariff rate, while late arrivals that missed the quarter-end would have meant reporting a major slump in sales. So Aston Martin decided to send hundreds of cars to bonded warehouses in the US – where goods can be stored without being subject to tariffs – before delivery firms raced to get them all to dealers before the end of day on 30 June. Those cars attracted the 10% rate, rather than 27.5%. Other carmakers face higher costs. The EU reached a deal with the US to cut tariffs on most goods including cars to 15%. Mercedes-Benz boss Ola Källenius said he did not expect any improvement on that for the car industry, despite lobbying for a lower rate from Germany's carmakers. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion Aston Martin also said that it had cut production and limited exports to the US to try to limit the financial impact. Even after its 30 June operation, Aston Martin could still be hit later in the year when it launches its million-dollar Valhalla, a mid-engine hypercar that it hopes will be a major contributor to profits. However, it is worried that the quota of 100,000 cars covered by the 10% tariff could be used up before it can get the Valhalla to dealers – potentially adding over £100,000 to the price if importers must pay the 27.5% rate. British companies exported just over 100,000 cars to the US last year, with the bulk being Range Rovers shipped by JLR. The quota could mean an end-of-year race between British carmakers to get their vehicles into the country, with 'pressure on the number of slots available on the 100,000 quota', Hallmark said.
Daily Mail
30-07-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Aston Martin warns Trump's tariffs will harm profits this year
Aston Martin expects to just break even this year as it warned 'evolving and disruptive' US trade tariffs would harm profits this year. The iconic British carmaker, which is also suffering subdued demand in Asian markets, cut its annual profit forecast on Wednesday after it was forced to scale back production and imports to the US. US tariffs have pummeled car firms, forcing companies, including GM, Volkswagen and Hyundai, to either book vast losses, issue profit warnings or slash their financial forecasts. Aston Martin said it now expects its annual adjusted operating profit to roughly break even. The group's chief executive, Adrian Hallmark, said the tariff situation was 'unhelpful to our operations' during the second quarter of the year. Hallmark's turnaround effort to boost efficiency and cut costs has been hit by Trump's tariffs on car sales in its biggest market. Hallmark warned that demand in the Asia-Pacific region would remain supressed in the near term. Sales in Asia-Pacific, which account for more than a quarter of Aston Martin's revenue, fell 9 per cent in the first half of 2025, with volumes in China broadly flat. The business, which had earlier forecast positive operating earnings in 2025, added that it now expected its gross margin to be broadly flat from a year ago. Revenue fell 34 per cent in the second quarter to £221million, with lower sales of its hypercars contributing to the downturn. The group's operating loss for the second quarter came in at £67.4million, down from £47.4million at the same point a year ago. On tariffs, Hallmark added: 'In response, we adjusted production and limited imports through April and May while awaiting confirmation of a trade agreement between the UK and the US, leveraging existing inventory held by our US dealers in that period. 'We resumed shipments to the U.S. in June in anticipation of a finalised agreement which came into effect on 30 June 2025. 'We continue to actively engage the UK government to urge them to improve the quota mechanism to ensure fair access for the whole UK car industry to the 10 per cent rate on an ongoing basis.' Higher tariffs may hurt demand, disrupt distribution, and raise costs for the business, which is responding by reviewing supply chain and pricing strategies to reduce possible negative impacts, it said. As part of a deal struck between the UK and US which came into effect in June, British carmakers will pay tariffs of 10 per cent on cars exported to the US. The 10 per cent tariff is less than the previous tariff of 27.5 per cent, but considerably higher than the 2.5 per cent levy in place before Trump's fresh trade tariffs. Plus, the lower tariff rate only counts for the first 100,000 UK cars sold in the US on a first come, first served basis. All deliveries above that threshold face the higher 27.5 per cent tariff. Aston Martin limited shipments to the US in April and May, before resuming them last month. The firm's net debt increased to £1.38 billion at the end of June. Amid uncertainty over tariffs, Aston Martin maintained its goal of becoming free-cash flow positive later this year. Aston Martin said it was edging closer to a deal to sell its minority stake in the Formula One racing team that bears its name for as much as £110million, which is a higher amount than previously targeted.
Yahoo
30-07-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Trade war: Aston Martin outlines plan to beat US tariff hit as profits sink
Aston Martin Lagonda has revealed a plan to bring forward production at the beginning of next year as it looks to swerve a worse hit from US trade tariffs. The UK luxury carmaker said it was lobbying the UK government to improve the terms of its trade deal with Donald Trump. The company explained that, as things stand, it would have to ship more cars earlier than planned next year if it was to ease the threat to its sales and bottom line posed by the quota element of the agreement. Auto manufacturers had initially faced down a tariff above 25% from April. Money latest: Since 30 June, that US import duty rate fell to 10% but it only applies to the first 100,000 UK-made cars which enter the US on an annual basis. Aston said on Wednesday that the tariff chaos, coupled with weaker demand in China, meant adjusted operating profits for the year would roughly break even. It had previously forecast a positive result. The company, best-known for its models' starring role in the majority of James Bond movies, issued the annual profit warning followed a temporary halt to US exports amid the tariff chaos. It resumed shipments last month. The United States and China account for its top two export markets. It has not been alone in issuing a warning to investors over the anticipated pressures on sales. Aston Martin boss Adrian Hallmark described demand in China, where consumers are feeling the pinch, as "stagnant" in a call with analysts. "The evolving and disruptive US tariff situation was unhelpful to our operations in Q2," he said. Aston said it was reviewing its supply chain to reduce possible negative impacts such as disruption to demand and distribution. It reported a 25% plunge in revenue to £454.4m in the six months to 30 June compared to the same period last year. Its core profit measure was in the red to the tune of £121.5m. That was 22% up on a £99.8m loss. Mr Hallmark said the financial performance also reflected fewer planned deliveries of its Specials models. The company is preparing for the first customer deliveries of Valhalla, its first mid-engine plug-in hybrid electric supercar. That is expected in the final quarter of the year. Shares have lost almost a third of their value in the year to date and were 5% down on Wednesday morning.
