Jaguar Land Rover sales driving ahead of last year's figures

WORLDWIDE sales of Jaguars and Land Rovers leapt by a third last month, boosted by strong demand in Britain, where the brands have benefited from the car scrappage scheme, writes Scott Reid.

Figures from Tata Motors, the Indian conglomerate that swallowed the two British marques in 2008, reveal that the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) division sold 21,134 vehicles in December.

Global sales of Jaguar models topped 4,794, a rise of 5 per cent on a year earlier, while Land Rover sales were 45 per cent higher at 16,340. The figures will boost hopes that JLR has turned a corner after a weak period over the whole of 2009.

However, some analysts have expressed fears that new car registrations in the UK will head into reverse when the car scrappage scheme runs out at the end of next month. The cash-for-bangers programme accounted for one in five of all new car registrations in December.

The government is to introduce a quota system to motor manufacturers for the rest of its car scrappage scheme after revealing that more than three quarters of the 400 million budget was used up.

Yesterday's figures showed Tata Motors' global sales, which also include the Tata Daewoo and Hispano Carrocera brands, grew by 84 per cent to 74,707 last month, compared to December 2008.