Aston Martin Fears French Ports More Than Tariffs After Brexit
- Weak pound, import tariffs offset higher cost of British goods
- James Bond car maker says delays more harmful than tariffs
The painted bodywork of an Aston Martin DB11 luxury automobile is moved by a robot through the Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd.'s manufacturing and assembly plant in Gaydon, U.K., on Tuesday, June 6, 2017. Aston Martin may consider an initial public offering as early as next year as the British maker of James Bond’s cars seeks to capitalize on the success of Ferrari NV’s listing to lure investors, people familiar with the matter said.
Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/BloombergAston Martins worth about $185,000 each piling up at French ports awaiting customs clearance: that’s the iconic British carmaker’s biggest Brexit nightmare.
Should the U.K. crash out of the European Union without a trade deal, autos imported into the bloc could face tariffs of about 10 percent. The manufacturer of movie spy James Bond’s cars says that prospect neither shakes nor stirs him, as sterling’s decline helps cushion the impact of higher prices.