UK govt's vaunted China export deals don't add up

Solihull, England

EACH aluminium Land Rover body that rolls along the production line at Solihull carries a lengthy sheet of paper giving the vehicle's specifications. At the top of the "build card" is the name of the country for which the vehicle is destined.

In recent years around one in five of the cards has had "China" printed on it. "I often think 'how rich are the people in China?' They buy so many," said line worker George Baker, amid a cacophony of forklift horns, beeping machinery and trumpeting line stoppage alarms.

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), owned by India's Tata Motors, increa…