Jaguar Land Rover asks for loans to boost car industry

The Sunday Times newspaper said Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) was in talks regarding a loan of one billion pounds (1.19 billion euros, US$1.49 billion).

The iconic brands Jaguar and Land Rover together employ about 15,000 workers in Britain, whose car industry like the U.S. auto sector is suffering at the hands of a global economic slowdown.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown was considering the JLR proposal and could deliver a verdict in a couple of weeks, said The Sunday Times.

In response to the report, a spokesman for JLR said: “The automotive industry is facing unprecedented trading conditions as a direct fall out of the banking crisis and turbulence in financial markets and we are of course keeping government appraised of the impact on our business.”

Tata Motors completed in June its acquisition of Jaguar and Land Rover from ailing U.S. carmaker Ford for US$2.3 billion.

Groups representing Britain’s car industry last week urged the government to help bolster the ailing sector, partly by increasing access to credit.

The call for help came as U.S. car giants Chrysler, Ford and General Motors pleaded for 25 billion dollars in U.S. government-backed loans.

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