The domino effect of the Trump tariff is being felt by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) in the UK, as the Tata Motors-owned company is forced to take drastic steps and slash 500 management jobs. The luxury automobile maker has blamed the drop in sales in the first quarter of FY26 on 15.1%. This is due to the temporary halt on exports for the US market and also pulling the plug on older Jaguar models. JLR has called this decision a ‘normal business practice’.
Trump tariffs create havoc for Jaguar Land Rover
Nothing stays the same, and Jaguar Land Rover knows this better than anyone else. The company signed off the last fiscal year on a high, but Trump’s import tariffs affected JLR drastically. In an official statement, JLR said that 1.5% of the staff will receive a ‘voluntary redundancy package’, which would result in not more than 500 people losing their jobs. The company has not revealed which departments will be affected by this decision.
Initially, when the tariffs were revealed, the Donald Trump administration announced a blanket 25% duty on direct import of vehicles. JLR understood that it would be difficult for the company to absorb the loss; hence, it temporarily halted exporting vehicles to the U.S.A. Good news for JLR is that recently, the US government reduced the tariffs for the UK to 10% for 100,000 vehicles, as all Range Rover models are made here.
What is not so good news for the company is that its best-selling model, the Defender, is manufactured in Slovakia, which faces a 25% US tariff. Another reason why the company has suddenly witnessed a drop in sales is that, till 2026, there will be no Jaguar vehicles available in the market, as the company is going all-electric.
Range Rover in India
Tata Motors-owned luxury vehicle maker Range Rover recently launched the top-of-the-line Velar Autobiography. The SUV is available in petrol and diesel, and both variants are priced at Rs 89.90 lakh, ex-showroom. The Velar Autobiography petrol version makes 247 bhp and 365 Nm of torque, while the diesel mild hybrid churns out 201 bhp with 430 Nm of torque.
