Honda Is Preparing to Shut U.K. Car Plant by 2022, Sky Says

LONDON (Capital Markets in Africa) – Honda Motor Co. is planning to close its factory in the U.K., dealing a new blow to a British auto industry already struggling with a Brexit-related slowdown and potential tariffs, Sky News reported, citing an unnamed source close to the company.

The Japanese manufacturer could announce the decision to close the plant in Swindon by 2022 as early as Tuesday. The factory, Honda’s only one in the EU, employs around 3,500 workers and makes the Civic hatchback. A company spokesman declined to comment when contacted by Bloomberg News.

Honda plans to retain its European headquarters in Bracknell, Berkshire, as well as its Formula One racing team operations in the U.K., Sky said.

The decision, if confirmed, shows pressure building on industry as U.K. lawmakers are yet to find a solution to avert a no-deal split from the EU. Ford Motor Co., announcing thousands of job cuts in Europe this year, last week said a hard Brexit would be “catastrophic” for the U.K. auto industry and its own production facilities. Ford is merging its U.K. head office with a nearby technical center to cut costs, while warning that measures in the event of a no-deal Brexit would be significantly more severe.

As the political impasse drags on before a March 29 deadline, investments in the British automotive industry nearly halved last year to 589 million pounds ($761 million), the lowest since the global financial crisis, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers.

Source: Bloomberg Business News