| Jaguar
Land Rover, the UK's leading manufacturer of premium luxury vehicles,
today announced its best ever global sales performance, with retail sales
up 30% following strong market performances from the UK, China and the
U.S.
Jaguar Land Rover has also confirmed that it will create up to 800 new
jobs at its advanced manufacturing facility in Solihull, UK, to support
the introduction of new model programmes throughout 2013.
Jaguar Land Rover sells over 355,000 vehicles in 2012
In 2012, Jaguar Land Rover sales (357,773 vehicles) were up in every major
market due to new model introductions and update programmes.
China is now Jaguar Land Rover's largest market delivering its best ever
sales performance in 2012 (71,940, up 71%). It is followed by the UK (68,333
up 19%), USA (55,675, up 11%), Russia (20,549, up 43%) and Germany (16,722
up 41%).
At the North American International Motor Show in Detroit,
Phil Popham, Jaguar Land Rover's Director of Group Sales Operations said:
"2012 has been a strong year for Jaguar Land Rover with record breaking
sales performance globally. All of our key markets saw strong progress,
with demand for our premium vehicles setting new records in a very competitive
environment.
"Looking ahead to 2013, we are continuing to invest in our business
to support our ambitious plans for growth and we will be introducing eight
new or refreshed products throughout the year."
Record breaking year for Land Rover in 2012
In 2012, Land Rover delivered a very strong performance in its 177 markets
with retail sales up 36% globally. The brand's top five markets were China,
the UK, United States, Russia and Italy which accounted for 65% of sales
alone. Notable product performances were delivered by the Range Rover
Evoque with 108,598 vehicles sold in its first full year of sales - more
than any other previous Land Rover model. Land Rover has also seen strong
performances from its Land Rover Discovery 4/LR4 (up 3%), Range Rover
Sport (up 4%) and first deliveries of the all-new Range Rover have now
commenced.
Commenting on Land Rover's sales performance, Global Brand Director John
Edwards said: "2012 was an excellent year for Land Rover; we delivered
a powerful global performance throughout the year across all markets,
with the highlight being that we have sold more vehicles this year than
ever before in our 65 year history. Our updated model line-up and the
debut of the new Range Rover have created a real buzz around the brand
with customers clearly delighted with our offerings."
Jaguar sales increase
Jaguar's sales for the year were up 6% compared to 2011. The launch of
the XF 2.2 Diesel, XF and XJ 3.0 litre powertrains and the introduction
of various new derivatives including the XF Sportbrake has widened the
brand's portfolio and geographic reach. The brand's top five markets were
the UK, United States, China, Germany and Russia which combined equated
to 71% of sales for the year. The XF continues to do very well with sales
globally up 13% and the introduction of the new XJ and XF All Wheel Drive
have been well received internationally, particularly in the U.S.
Commenting on Jaguar's sales performance, Global Brand Director Adrian
Hallmark said: "This year saw the completion of a revitalised Jaguar
line-up. We now have a very strong desirable range of products which are
clearly capturing the public's imagination. We plan to continue growing
in 2013 with the stunning new F-TYPE."
New jobs created to support growth
In 2013, Jaguar Land Rover will continue to implement its ambitious plans
for growth and has announced a recruitment campaign to create 800 new
jobs in the UK to support the introduction of future model programmes.
More than 200 of these roles are supported by the UK Government's Regional
Growth Fund.
The recruitment campaign for production operators is underway at Jaguar
Land Rover's advanced manufacturing plant in Solihull, West Midlands.
Jaguar Land Rover has recently confirmed a £370
million ($600million) investment programme for its Solihull site which
includes the installation of a new aluminium body shop for the all-new
Range Rover as well as upgrades to paint-applications technologies, trim
assembly, warehousing and Jaguar Land Rover's first customer handover
centre.
In the last two years, Jaguar Land Rover has embarked on the most ambitious
recruitment campaign in the company's history, hiring 8,000 people. It
now employs 25,000 people globally.
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