Aston Martin Lagonda has warned coronavirus has the potential to impact on demand and supply in China - its fastest growing market - as it posted widening annual losses and confirmed a £500 million investor cash call.
The luxury car maker reported pre-tax losses of £104.3 million for 2019, against losses of £68.2 million a year earlier.
In a separate announcement today, the Warwickshire-based group said chief financial officer Mark Wilson would step down from his post no later than April 30 following discussions between himself and the board.
Aston Martin said that, while it had not yet seen any impact on production in China from the coronavirus outbreak, it confirmed there had been some disruption to supply of components from China and warned over the possibility of a hit to the overall supply chain and customer demand.
China was its fastest growing market last year and accounted for 9% of total wholesales.
Aston Martin said sports car wholesales were expected to be "materially lower" in 2020 and cautioned underlying earnings would be "almost entirely" weighted to the final six months.
It is a big year ahead for the manufacturer with move into the luxury SUV market.
The new facility in the Vale of Glamorgan, which was officially opened in December, will go into full production of the DBX in the next few weeks.
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The DBX, which will be Aston Martin’s first foray into the sports utility vehicle market, is designed to appeal to women in countries such as China and the US, enabling the company to expand away from its traditional male-dominated sports car clientele.
The SUV is seen as critical to the long-term success of Aston Martin.
Andy Palmer, Aston Martin Lagonda president and group chief executive, said: "2019 was an extremely challenging period for the company.
"We have revised our business plan to reset, stabilise and de-risk the business, positioning it for controlled, long-term profitable growth.
"We are focused on turning around performance, restoring price positioning by operating a pull vs push model, reducing dealer inventories to a luxury norm and delivering a more efficient operational footprint."
Earlier this year, Aston Martin agreed to sell a £182 million stake to a consortium led by a Canadian billionaire as part of a major fundraiser to protect the future of the British manufacturer.
The company, known for making James Bond's cars of choice, said it would raise a total of £500 million through the group's investment as well as a £318 million rights issue supported by major shareholders.
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The consortium led by Lawrence Stroll, owner of Formula One team Racing Point, purchased a 20% stake in the business.
Referring to Mr Wilson's departure, Mr Palmer added: "On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Mark for his hard work, personal commitment and dedication to Aston Martin Lagonda in the past five years.
"I have personally enjoyed working with him and he has been a valued member of my senior team. Mark leaves with my personal thanks and the board's very best wishes for success in whatever he chooses to do next."
Mr Wilson said: "It has been a privilege to work with the team at Aston Martin Lagonda during a period of great change.
"I am proud to have been part of the team that delivered the DB11, Vantage and DBS in addition to some wonderful and unique special vehicles."