Aston Martin cuts jobs by 20% as US tariffs hit

Feb 25 (Reuters) - British luxury car maker Aston Martin will cut its workforce by up to 20%, it said on Wednesday, as it strives to recover from the impact of U.S. import tariffs and weak demand in China.

Aston Martin said the job cuts from a total workforce of around 3,000 should deliver annualised savings of around 40 million pounds ($54 million). It did not specify when the job cuts would be implemented, but said most of the savings would be this year. The cuts include a 5% reduction announced last year.

It also trimmed its five-year capital spending plan to 1.7 billion pounds from 2 billion pounds by delaying investment in electric vehicle technology.

In early trade, Aston Martin shares rose by nearly 5% after declines for nine successive sessions.

LACK OF CASH AND HIGH LEVELS OF DEBT

Best known as the car brand driven by James Bond, the company has struggled to generate cash and manage its debt of 1.38 billion pounds, although it has received injections of capital from Canadian billionaire and Chairman Lawrence Stroll and through deals.

It said U.S. tariffs had been "extremely disruptive" and demand had also been "extremely subdued" in China, the world's biggest auto market.

Aston Martin said it expected further cash outflows in 2026, but also predicted "material improvement" in its financial performance.

It has a target for gross margins in the high 30% range and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes near breakeven, helped by around 500 deliveries of its new Valhalla hybrid supercar.

The company made an operating loss of 259.2 million pounds in 2025.

As part of its efforts to improve its finances, it struck a 50-million-pound deal to sell the perpetual branding rights to its Formula One team last week.

($1 = 0.7395 pounds)

(Reporting by Yamini Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy, Mrigank Dhaniwala and Barbara Lewis)