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(Adds accounting error)
By Costas Pitas
LONDON, July 29 (Reuters) - Carmaker Aston Martin,
which has changed its boss and brought in a billionaire investor
this year, posted a deeper first-half loss of 227 million pounds
($293 million) on Wednesday amid a slump in sales.
Its main factory, which closed during the lockdown, is not
due to reopen until the end of August as the firm focussed on
resuming production at a new site in Wales, where its first
sport utility vehicle, the DBX, rolled off the line this month.
Renowned as James Bond's carmaker of choice, the firm has
had a difficult time since floating in 2018 as it failed to meet
expectations and burnt through cash, prompting it to give a
stake to a consortium led by billionaire Lawrence Stroll.
Since then it has announced job cuts, reduced inventories
and picked a new chief executive among a series of changes,
while it is also responding to the pandemic which contributed to
a 41% drop in sales.
"It has been a challenging period with our dealers and
factories closed due to COVID-19, in addition to aligning our
sales with inventory with the associated impact on financial
performance as we reposition for future success," Stroll said.
The firm's half-year pre-tax loss of 227 million pounds
compares to a loss of 80 million pounds in the same period last
year. Revenue fell by nearly two thirds to 146 million pounds.
The company said it had identified an accounting error in
its U.S. region, meaning the firm's loss was slightly deeper in
2019 with a reduction in earnings before interest and tax of
15.3 million pounds.
Aston's first 4x4 is central to its turnaround plans as it
enters a lucrative segment of the market in a bid to widen its
appeal, including to more female buyers.
"We're pleased with how it's developing," finance chief Ken
Gregor told Reuters.
(Reporting by Costas Pitas; Editing by Alistair Smout and
Edmund Blair)
