By Anna Wise and Henry Saker-Clark PA,Graeme Brown

Copyright birminghammail

Jaguar Land Rover could be looking at a financial blow of £120 million after the UK’s largest car manufacturer extended its production halt for another week, according to experts. On Tuesday, the automotive giant announced that it will cease production across all its factories until at least Wednesday 24 September as it continues to deal with the aftermath of a severe cyber attack. The company has also reportedly warned suppliers that the disruption could extend into November . Read more: Reason ‘racially motivated rape’ suspect can’t be named Earlier this month, JLR was compelled to stop production at its factories in Halewood, on Merseyside, and Solihull in the West Midlands, as well as its engine manufacturing site in Wolverhampton. This followed a significant cyber attack that impacted its global operations and forced the UK manufacturer to shut down its systems on 31 August. Employees have been instructed not to return to work while the production lines remain affected. A JLR spokesman said: “We have taken this decision as our forensic investigation of the cyber incident continues, and as we consider the different stages of the controlled restart of our global operations, which will take time,”. “We are very sorry for the continued disruption this incident is causing and we will continue to update as the investigation progresses.” JLR has stated it is “working around the clock” to get things back up and running, including employing cyber security specialists and implementing workarounds to maintain activity. However, the expense of the extended disruption period is expected to prove costly for the manufacturer, which typically produces approximately 1,000 vehicles daily. David Bailey, professor of business economics at the Birmingham Business School, told the PA news agency that the suspension will likely substantially impact profits during an already difficult time for the firm. “The value of cars usually made at the sites means that around £1.7 billion worth of vehicles will not have been produced, and I’d estimate that would have an initial impact of around £120 million on profits,” he said. “Some of that might be recovered when production restarts but the longer this goes on, the more of a concern this will be. “If reports are right that this could last until November, then that could mean around 50,000 cars not being produced.” Mr Bailey also expressed worries that the production stoppage could jeopardise the future of smaller enterprises within JLR’s supply network. It is understood that JLR executives will meet with Department for Business and Trade officials on Tuesday to request financial assistance for supply chain companies. Trade union Unite also cautioned that thousands of workers in JLR’s supply chain face the risk of losing their jobs due to the production halt. The union urged the Government to implement a furlough programme to protect employment whilst efforts to restore operations continue. The firm confirmed that staff directly employed by JLR faced no threat of redundancy. JLR revealed last week that it suspected “some data” had been compromised during the cyber attack, though it declined to specify whether customers or employees were amongst those affected. The company stated it would reach out to individuals if it discovered their information had been breached.