JLR halts US shipments to assess impact of Trump’s tariffs
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will pause shipments of its UK-made cars to the US for a month to assess the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The 25 per cent tariff imposed by the US on imported cars took effect on 3 April.
A JLR spokesperson said: “The USA is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands. As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are enacting our short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid to longer-term plans.”
JLR, which is owned by India’s Tata Motors, is one of Britain’s biggest producers, selling 400,000 Range Rover Sports, Defenders and other models annually.
In Q3 of 2024, JLR exported 38,000 cars to the US – almost the same number sold to the UK and EU combined.
The Sunday Times reported yesterday that JLR is thought to have a couple of months’ supply of cars already in the US, which will not be subject to the new tariffs.
Shipping vehicles across the Atlantic takes about 21 days.
The government will today announce relaxed rules around electric vehicles after carmakers were hit by Trump's tariffs.
Labour made a manifesto pledge to restore a 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars after it had been rolled back to 2035 by Rishi Sunak's Conservative government.
While the ban will be confirmed in an announcement today, regulations around manufacturing targets on electric cars and vans will be altered, to help firms in the transition.
Luxury supercar firms such as Aston Martin and McLaren will still be allowed to keep producing petrol cars beyond the 2030 date, because they only manufacture a small number of vehicles per year.
Petrol and diesel vans will also be allowed to be sold until 2035, along with hybrids and plug-in hybrid cars.
The government is also going to make it easier for manufacturers who do not comply with the government's Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, which sets sales targets, to avoid fines, and the levies will be reduced.
