BENGALURU(Reuters) – Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) owner Tata Motors reported a loss for the third quarter on Monday, hurt by semiconductor shortages and high commodity prices.
Automakers worldwide have been roiled by the chip shortage, along with supply chain disruptions, COVID-19 restrictions and rising raw material prices after a short-lived recovery towards the end of 2020.
Retail sales at JLR, which accounts for most of Tata Motors’ revenue, fell 37.6% in the December quarter from a year earlier, and production volumes jumped 41% sequentially, the company said.
“The semiconductor shortage is expected to continue through 2022 but is expected to gradually improve as capacity within the supply base increases”, Tata Motors said in an exchange filing on Monday.
Consolidated net loss came in at 15.16 billion rupees ($203.23 million) for the quarter ended Dec. 31, compared to a profit of 29.06 billion rupees a year earlier when an easing of coronavirus-related restrictions led to a pick-up in sales.
However, the recovery was short-lived as acute semiconductor shortages and supply chain disruptions delayed production, and Tata Motors slipped back to losses.
($1 = 74.5950 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
