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Rising aluminum costs cut into Ford's profit

When Ford reports fourth-quarter results on Wednesday afternoon, it is expected to fret that rising metals costs have cut into profits, even as rivals say they have the problem under control. Aluminum prices have risen 20 percent in the last year and nearly 11 percent since Dec. 11. Steel prices have risen just over 9 percent in the last year. Ford uses more aluminum in its vehicles than its rivals. Aluminum is lighter but far more expensive than steel, closing at $2,229 per tonne on Tuesday. U.S. steel futures closed at $677 per ton (0.91 metric tonnes). Republican U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is weighing whether to impose tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, which could push prices even higher. Ford gave a disappointing earnings estimate for 2017 and 2018 last week, saying the higher costs for steel, aluminum and other metals, as well as currency volatility, could cost the company $1.6 billion in 2018. Ford shares took a dive after the announcement. Ford Chief Financial Officer Bob Shanks told analysts at a conference in Detroit last week that while the company benefited from low commodity prices in 2016, rising steel prices were now the main cause of higher costs, followed by aluminum. Shanks said the automaker at times relies on foreign currencies as a "natural hedge" for some commodities but those are now going in the opposite direction, so they are not working. A Ford spokesman added that the automaker also uses a mix of contracts, hedges and indexed buying. Industry analysts point to the spike in aluminum versus steel prices as a plausible reason for Ford's problems, especially since it uses far more of the expensive metal than other major automakers. "When you look at Ford in the context of the other automakers, aluminum drives a lot of their volume and I think that is the cause" of their rising costs, said Jeff Schuster, senior vice president of forecasting at auto consultancy LMC Automotive. Other major automakers say rising commodity costs are not much of a problem. At last week's Detroit auto show, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV's Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne reiterated its earnings guidance for 2018 and held forth on a number of topics, but did not mention metals prices. General Motors Co gave a well-received profit outlook last week and did not mention the subject. "We view changes in raw material costs as something that is manageable," a GM spokesman said in an email.

Land Rover plotting high-performance Disco Sport, Evoque

Jaguar Land Rover is getting serious about performance with its new SVR line of high-output machinery. We've already seen the Range Rover Sport SVR, and we're anticipating more to follow with SVR versions of the new Jaguar XE, Range Rover LWB, outgoing Land Rover Defender and plenty more. The lineup will eventually include performance versions of most, but not all of the British automaker's products. But while the smallest Land Rovers may not get the full-on SVR treatment, JLR reportedly has something in the works. According to Australian website Motoring, Land Rover is watching the segment and considering its options. It sees Audi with its SQ5, BMW planning performance versions of the X3 and X4, and Mercedes plotting an AMG version of the GLC that's set to replace the GLK. The question is just what Land Rover will do. Both the Discovery Sport and Range Rover Evoque are based on the same D8 platform that incorporates transversely mounted inline-fours, so fitting something larger might be prohibitive, but a high-output turbo version of the new Ingenium four-cylinder engine design could do the trick. Considering what the likes of Volvo and Mercedes have managed to do with their high-strung turbo fours, Land Rover's approach could prove to be no slouch at all – even without the 5.0-liter supercharged V8 powering the flagship SVR models. In related news, Autovisie – the automotive section of Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf – projects that an SVR version of the Jaguar F-Type will be among the high-performance models coming up next. Slotting above the F-Type R with its 550 horsepower, the F-Type SVR will be even more powerful. The Project 7 speedster packaged a 575-hp version of the same supercharged V8, potentially pointing the way forward for future SVR models. Featured Gallery Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Autobiography View 17 Photos Related Gallery 2015 Land Rover Discovery Sport View 16 Photos News Source: Motoring.com.au, AutovisieImage Credit: Land Rover Jaguar Land Rover SUV Performance jaguar land rover svr

Jaguar Land Rover signs manufacturing contract with Magna Steyr

Jaguar Land Rover is in the midst of implementing big plans. Those include a raft of new models, and a series of new manufacturing facilities to build them. It seems, however, that the former is outpacing the latter, as the British automaker has just announced a new manufacturing contract to have some of its vehicles built off-site. The latest deal is with Magna Steyr, the contract manufacturer based in Graz, Austria. That could see a Land Rover produced at the same facility that has handled the Mercedes G-Class since 1979, or a Jaguar at the same place that assembled the Aston Martin Rapide until 2012 when production was moved back to the UK. The big question at this point is just what JLR will choose to have Magna build on its behalf. The British automaker isn't saying at this point, but a spokesman confirmed to Autoblog that it will be a future product – not an existing line moved from its current production site to the contract manufacturer, as Mercedes recently did with the R-Class. A timeline wasn't announced at this early stage, either, but we're told it will take about 24 months before new Jaguars or Land Rovers start rolling out of the plant in Austria. Just what those new vehicles will be remains to be seen, but Jaguar Land Rover has a number of new products on their way. It is expected to reveal in the near future a new Defender, a replacement for the current LR4/Discovery, the new Evoque convertible, a new XJ flagship sedan, and possibly a new coupe and convertible to take the place of the old XK. We'll soon see the new Jaguar F-Pace, which may be followed by additional crossovers as well. The company also recently introduced the new XE, XF, and Discovery Sport models, though given the timeframes, they'll almost certainly be produced at JLR's existing facilities. It recently opened its first overseas plant in China, has another one under construction in Brazil, and is also said to be considering a plant in North America on either side of the US-Mexican border. Jaguar Land Rover Signs Contract Manufacturing Agreement With Magna Steyr Whitley, UK - Jaguar Land Rover has agreed a manufacturing partnership with Magna Steyr, an operating unit of Magna International Inc, to build some future vehicles in Graz, Austria.