Aston Martin cuts earnings outlook amid US tariff hit

Luxury carmaker Aston Martin Lagonda has cut its full-year outlook after revealing widened first half losses as trade tariff woes took their toll.

The group saw shares fall over 3% in morning trading on Wednesday after saying it now expects full-year underlying earnings to “improve towards breakeven”, having previously guided for profit growth.

Aston’s stock has lost half its value in the past year over concerns about the impact of US President Donald Trump’s tariff war.

The profit alert comes after Aston Martin revealed the impact of a difficult first half, with operating losses widening to £134.7 million for the six months to June 30 from £106.1 million a year earlier.

Revenues tumbled 34% to £220.5 million in the second quarter and were down 25% overall in the first half.

The group limited shipments to the US in the second quarter after Mr Trump imposed a 25% tariff on car imports in April.

It then resumed shipments in June as the UK reached an agreement with the US for a lower 10% tariff on UK-made cars for the first 100,000 vehicles per manufacturer.

Anything above that threshold will be hit with a 27.5% duty.

Adrian Hallmark, chief executive of Aston Martin, said: “The evolving and disruptive US tariff situation was unhelpful to our operations in the second quarter.”

He added: “We continue to actively engage the UK Government to urge them to improve the quota mechanism to ensure fair access for the whole UK car industry to the 10% rate on an ongoing basis.”

The tariff disruption saw the firm’s wholesale sales by volume fall 8% in the second quarter to 972.

The results come amid a significant overhaul at Aston Martin as it seeks to shore up its long-term finances.

In February, the group said it plans to sell its minority stake in the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One team and confirmed that Lawrence Stroll’s Yew Tree Consortium would invest a further £52.5 million to grow its stake in the business.

Aston Martin said the deal to sell a stake in the Formula One racing team was nearing completion and would be worth around £110 million.