Rolls-Royce urges Theresa May to prevent a hard Brexit

Rolls-Royce called on the British government to prevent a disorderly Brexit and said it was building up some stock, broadening warehouse capacity and training providers for customs changes in case Britain leaves the EU without a deal.

Britain, the world’s fifth largest economy, is about to leave the world’s biggest trading bloc in under 80 days but a Brexit agreement appears set to be voted down by lawmakers in upcoming week, making a no-deal and potential trade barriers more likely.

The BMW-owned brand, which reported record 2018 sales, stated that regardless of the steps it was taking to get ready for Brexit, it was impossible to predict what would occur if there is not a managed transition after March 29.

“We are highly dependent on a proper, working frictionless chain of goods and this whole company hinges on just-in-time deliveries,” Chief Executive Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes informed reporters.

“We urge the government to avoid any hard Brexit,” he stated.

Asked whether Rolls-Royce, which constructs all of its approximately 4,000 cars annually at its Goodwood factory in southern England, would ever make some models overseas, Mueller-Oetvoes stated: “This is a no-go,” and “Rolls-Royce belongs to Britain, we are committed to Britain.”

Sales at the 115-year-old company, which hires a little over 2,000 people, increased 22 percent to 4,107 cars last year, boosted by an over 40 percent increase in demand from China, which accounted for one in five purchases.