This represents a 6% increase on 2015, and saw record results in the US, Japanese, German and UK markets. With all markets globally, aside from the Middle East, seeing growth, the company’s CEO, Torsten Müller-Ötvös, called 2016 “the perfect year” for the luxury marque.
“Rolls-Royce is a true Great British manufacturing success story, one driven by the hard work and ingenuity of the men and women employed at our Centre of Luxury Excellence in Goodwood, West Sussex,” added Müller-Ötvös. “We are deeply committed to a long term, sustainable, successful growth strategy and this result, amidst a backdrop of global uncertainty, affirms this approach.”
Before last June’s Brexit referendum, Rolls-Royce were in favour of remaining in the EU, as 90% of their output is exported. However, Müller-Ötvös has committed the company to its manufacturing base in West Sussex, which recently took on 100 new members of staff, taking the total number of employees at the Goodwood plant up to 1,700. "Success for Rolls-Royce is success for Great Britain and we reaffirm our commitment to maintaining the home of Rolls-Royce in the UK,” Müller-Ötvös said.
Rolls-Royce also opened its Technology and Logistics Centre in Bognor Regis, in January last year. The company has said it is now planning to extend the 30,000 square metre site by a further 10,000 sqm “to meet growing demand and readiness for future models.”
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) have also posted increased sales figures, with the company selling a record 583,312 cars in 2016 – a 20% increase on the year before. There was particularly strong demand for the company’s F-Pace model.
Last year, JLR’s chief executive, Dr Ralf Speth, said that the company wanted to double production from 500,000 to one million vehicles per year.
