Shares of Tata Motors hit a seven-year low after reports of a steep decline in global sales of its luxury Jaguar Land Rover cars.
The stock went below 200-rupee levels on the National Stock Exchange, the lowest since January 11, 2012.
Tata shares hit an intra-day low of 170.30 points, a fall of 19.8%, from the previous close of 212.35 points. Then, at 11.20am it was quoted at 194.90, down 12.95%. The stock has plunged more than 56% over the past year.
On Monday Jaguar Land Rover reported a 12% decline in global sales at 57,114 units in September, amid lower demand in China, the Press Trust of India reported.
The company’s sales in China nearly halved – down 46% – during September, compared to the same month last year, because of ongoing market uncertainty stemming from import duty changes and continued trade tension have hit consumer demand.
Following weak September sales, JLR announced a two-week shutdown at its Solihull plant in the Midlands in Britain to align supply in response to fluctuating demand globally.
This comes on top of a three-day week at the group’s Castle Bromwich plant from October 18 to December 18.