7:12 pm
Jack
Tata Motors Ltd. (TTMT), owner of the Jaguar and Land Rover brands, said group Chief Executive Officer Carl-Peter Forster resigned with immediate effect due to “unavoidable personal circumstances.”
“The board respects Carl-Peter’s personal circumstances that led to this move,” Chairman Ratan Tata said in an e-mailed statement today. “We would like to thank him for his contributions to the successful development of our company.”
Forster, who joined Tata Motors in 2010, will continue as a non-executive member on the company’s board. Tata Motors hired him from General Motors Co. where he was head of European operations.
“Forster was spearheading the turnaround of Tata Motors and enabling its global push,” said Umesh Karne, a Mumbai-based analyst with Brics Securities Ltd. “We may see some impact on operations since he was an experienced person. We need to watch for his replacement.”
Tata Motors shares declined 3.3 percent to 764.9 rupees at the 3:30 p.m. close in Mumbai. The shares have declined 42 percent this year, compared with a 18 percent decline in the BSE India Sensitive Index.
Forster’s resignation was announced after market hours.
