The boss of Jaguar Land Rover has said the company, based in Coventry, has enough parts to maintain its British production for the next two weeks but warned of shortfalls from March should delays to deliveries persist. Chief executive Ralf Speth also revealed coronavirus, formally named COVID-19, is affecting the sale of vehicles in China and the company has resorted to bringing over parts in suitcases. Jaguar Land Rover aren’t the only company to be affected by factory shutdowns and movement restrictions in China, with American technology company Apple reporting similar issues.

Dr Speth said: “We are safe for this week and we are safe for next week and in the third week we have parts missing.

“We have flown parts in suitcases from China to the UK.”

He said the firm’s Chinese factory would open next week following an extended Lunar New Year closure.

The boss also admitted sales of the company’s vehicles in the country had ground to a halt.

Speaking at the same event on Tuesday, the boss of Tata Motor’s – Jaguar Land Rover’s parent company, said the company may face difficulties from the end of next month.

Guenter Butschek said: “We are safe for the month of February and for a good part of March.

“Are we fully covered at this point of time for the full month of March? Unfortunately… not.”

Jaguar Land Rover’s announcement follows the news that Apple’s biggest iPhone plant is struggling to return to full production after China’s New Year.

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Bosses said in a statement that as most stores in China either closed or were operating at reduced hours, sales of Apple products would be lower.

They said in a statement: “We do not expect to meet the revenue guidance we provided for the March quarter.”

The company added that it was “experiencing a slower return to normal conditions”.

Analysts have estimated that the virus may slash demand for smartphones by half in the first quarter in China, which is the world’s biggest market for the devices.

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The iPhone maker is the first major US company to say that the epidemic will hit its finances.

The warning underlines fears that China’s economy will be seriously affected by the outbreak.

Kristalina Georgieva, head of the International Monetary Fund, warned there could be a cut of about 0.1-0.2 percentage points to global growth, but stressed there was much uncertainty about the virus’s economic impact.

The rapidly spreading virus has so far killed nearly 1,900 people in China and infected some 72,000 people.

The number of new daily infections in mainland China has fallen for the first time since January.

Chinese authorities say the stabilisation in the number of new cases is a sign that tough measures they have taken to halt the spread of the disease are having an effect.

But the daily death toll has not been under 100 since February 11.

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