Another global luxury automaker is cutting jobs after struggling to keep pace as the industry shifts to electric vehicles (EVs). With EVs gaining market share in most major regions, some are starting to get left behind.
Aston Martin cuts jobs, delays its first EV (again)
Aston Martin announced plans to cut 5% of its workforce on Wednesday after its fourth-quarter losses (before tax) surged 400%. The company expects the move will save around 25 million pounds ($31,700).
The British luxury brand missed full-year estimates after wholesale volume slipped 9% last year. It’s ballooning debt also reached 1.16 billion pounds ($1.47 billion), up 43% from 2023.
CEO Adrian Hallmark blamed “industry-wide supply chain disruptions” and the “macroeconomic weakness in China” for the poor performance and job cuts.
Aston Martin’s wholesale volumes plunged 49% in China last year compared to 2023. Like most global OEMs, Aston Martin is getting squeezed out of the market after struggling to keep up with EV leaders like BYD, Tesla, XPeng, NIO, and others.
Despite falling behind early, Aston Martin is delaying its first fully electric vehicle (EV), yet again. The luxury automaker pushed back the long-awaited EV last year until 2026. It was initially scheduled to launch later this year. Now, it’s planned for “the latter part of this decade.”
In 2023, the British luxury brand entered a strategic tech partnership with Lucid Motors to use its advanced EV powertrain technology for its future electric sports cars.
Aston Martin is the latest luxury automaker to announce job cuts as it struggles to keep up in the global EV race. Earlier this month, Porsche announced plans to cut 1,900 jobs in Germany by 2029, also due to lower profits and sales in China, one of its most important markets.
Other global OEMs, including Ford (in Europe), Nissan, Stellantis, and Volkswagen all announced plans to cut jobs with more competition and rising losses in China.
In the meantime, Aston Martin will focus on its first mid-engine plug-in hybrid vehicle (PHEV), the Valhalla, which will launch later this year. The Valhalla is already sold out for the first year’s production, which is limited to just 999 units.
Update 2/27/2025: Mercedes-Benz reportedly plans to cut up to 15% of its workforce in China by 2027 due to the same struggles. Sources told Bloomberg that Mercedes is losing ground to lower-priced, more advanced Chinese EVs. The German luxury automaker’s sales fell 7% in China last year.
Electrek’s Take
Like most global automakers, Aston Martin (and most luxury automakers) is struggling to keep up with China’s EV surge. Luxury automakers like Aston Martin, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Porsche have been hit especially hard, with more advanced, tech-loaded EVs coming out of China, many times at a much lower price.
Although BYD is best known for its cheap EVs, like the $10,000 Seagull, it’s quickly expanding with luxury sedans, SUVs, and electric sports cars hitting the market.
And BYD is not the only one. Xiaomi, which launched its first EV, the SU7, last March, secured nearly 250,000 orders in just nine months. On Thursday, it launched the flagship “Ultra” model, starting at just 529,900 yuan ($73,000). XPeng, NIO, Li Auto, and others are all gaining market share in China’s luxury market.
With China now flooded with domestic models, these companies are expanding into new overseas markets, including Europe, Southeast Asia, and Central and South America, to drive growth.
Can global automakers keep up? Or will China continue dominating the market over the next few years as the industry shifts to EVs? Drop us a comment below and let us know your thoughts.
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