A business employing hundreds in Gloucestershire and dedicated to serving the ever-changing motor industry, has reported a fall in world-wide revenues of 11 per cent.

After currency exchanges are taken into account that fall in its first quarter figures - on revenues of £1.2billion - can be adjusted to six per cent.

Nevertheless, the firm - which employs 1,000 staff at its Stonehouse base and remains committed to apprenticeships, remained optimistic - confident, even.

Richard F. Dauch, chief executive officer of United States headquartered Delphi Technologies, said: "We made an encouraging start to 2019 and are reaffirming our outlook for the year.

"Consistent with our vision to be the pioneers in propulsion technology solutions which enable vehicles to drive cleaner, better and further, we continue to have strong momentum on key initiatives that will support our long-term growth.

"Having completed my initial orientation of the company in Q1, I am even more bullish about the opportunity here at Delphi Technologies to create value for all our stakeholders.

"We are now working at pace to define, prioritize and resource the actions we will take to ensure this potential becomes a reality.

"Our teams are operating with a renewed sense of urgency and focus on execution, and I look forward to the future with confidence."

According to the first quarter report the firm said adjusted revenue "reflected a decrease of seven per cent in powertrain systems and a decrease of six per cent in Aftermarket.

"On a regional basis, adjusted revenue also reflects growth of three per cent in Europe, eight per cent in South America, and a decrease of 25 per cent in Asia Pacific, and five per cent in North America".