A week out from the start of the hotly anticipated 2026 Formula 1 season opener, Aston Martin has reported an eye-watering loss, exceeding 490 million pounds, or more than $900 million Australian dollars.

A loss of that size, and the cost associated with the ongoing development of electric vehicles, puts
the future of Aston Martin on very shaky ground.

The Times reported that Aston Martin had confirmed a loss of 493.2 million pounds last year, a
jump of 52 per cent. With headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, and a workforce of 3000 people,
job losses are expected to total around 600.

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The manufacturer, which has been struggling for several years now, blamed tariffs brought down
by US President Donald Trump, and a shrinking of its market share in China as key factors behind
the huge loss. Job cuts though, will only deliver savings of 40 millions pounds, and it remains
unclear where else the iconic British manufacturer can claw back profit.

A spokesperson told The Times that ‘US traffic had been extremely disruptive’, and ‘demand in
China had been extremely subdued’, the world’s largest new-car market. Aston Martin reported it
will also delay investment in electric vehicle technology, cutting capital spending to 1.7 billion
pounds from 2 billion pounds.

A statement released by Aston Martin said, “having undertaken at the start of 2025 a process to
make organisational adjustments to ensure the business was appropriately resourced for its future
plans, we had to take the difficult decision at the end of 2025 to implement further changes”.

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The enormous redirection of funds toward EV development has seen Aston Martin face the same
malaise as other sports and super car manufacturers, developing cars that the public seemingly
doesn’t want in large numbers, but at great cost. Aston Martin postponed the launch of its first
electric car, a call that came just before Lamborghini decided to cancel its EV completely, in the
face of lukewarm interest.

For now, the Grand Prix division of the company remains separate from the road car division – and
perhaps most importantly – valuable. Majority Shareholder and executive chairman Lawrence Stroll
recently moved 50 million pounds from the road car arm to the F1 team to lock down naming rights
for Aston Martin in F1.