Despite the announcement of the U.S. car maker Ford Motor Co that it would launch two new car models in China – the largest auto market, at the end of the year, the company has again now done well in the market primarily because of a shortage of fresh products.
Fords has bene struggling to boost sales in China but has been unsuccessful. The car maker reported a drop of 11 per cent in sale in the market in March compared to the figure in the same period a year ago.
With a sale volume of 83,666 vehicles, the Michigan-based automaker had noted a drop in sale of 30 per cent year-on-year in February. The company also reported a fall of 19 per cent in the sale volume for the first quarter – totaling 207,139 vehicles, compared to the same period a year ago.
Following a week long national holiday in China, there has been a strengthening of the vehicles market in march on the overall and it is amidst such a market that Ford continues to struggle in the market. The market noted a 4.7 per cent growth in the sale of vehicles compared to a year ago clocking a total of 2.66 million units, according to data by an industry body released earlier this week.
The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said that there has been an uptick of 2.8 per cent in the sale of vehicles in the Chinese market in the first quarter of the compared to the same quarter last year.
However, the first quarter report from Ford clearly shows that it has not managed to be a par5t of the modest rise in the Chinese vehicles market.
According to Ford officials, the shortage of new or significantly redesigned cars models in its product offering would be the cause for a sluggish year for the company in the Chinese marke.t the company expects the situation to continue till the end of 2018 when it expects to launch two new models.
“This year will be a bit like going through a tunnel,” Peter Fleet, Ford’s head of Asia-Pacific operations, told Reuters earlier this year. “We have to get through 2018.”
The China business for Ford has been troubled by its joint venture with the Changan Automobile Group.in the month of March, there was a drop of 22 per cent year-on-year in the sales by Changan Ford Automobile with a total of 46,217 vehicles. At the same time, a drop of 26 per cent in the first quarter of the year with a total sale of 124,459 vehicles.
And despite a rise of 5 per cent year-on-year in the sale of Ford’s vans and other commercial vehicles by the company’s second joint venture with Jiangling Motor Corp (JMC), the first quarter sale dropped by 16 per cent.
The only bright spot for the company is perhaps the rise of 27 per cent in March and 10 percent year-on-year in the sales of Ford’s premium Lincoln brand.
“SUVs, commercial and luxury vehicles are key priorities of our strategy this year,” Fleet said in a statement on Friday.
(Source:www.reuters.com)
Fords has bene struggling to boost sales in China but has been unsuccessful. The car maker reported a drop of 11 per cent in sale in the market in March compared to the figure in the same period a year ago.
With a sale volume of 83,666 vehicles, the Michigan-based automaker had noted a drop in sale of 30 per cent year-on-year in February. The company also reported a fall of 19 per cent in the sale volume for the first quarter – totaling 207,139 vehicles, compared to the same period a year ago.
Following a week long national holiday in China, there has been a strengthening of the vehicles market in march on the overall and it is amidst such a market that Ford continues to struggle in the market. The market noted a 4.7 per cent growth in the sale of vehicles compared to a year ago clocking a total of 2.66 million units, according to data by an industry body released earlier this week.
The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said that there has been an uptick of 2.8 per cent in the sale of vehicles in the Chinese market in the first quarter of the compared to the same quarter last year.
However, the first quarter report from Ford clearly shows that it has not managed to be a par5t of the modest rise in the Chinese vehicles market.
According to Ford officials, the shortage of new or significantly redesigned cars models in its product offering would be the cause for a sluggish year for the company in the Chinese marke.t the company expects the situation to continue till the end of 2018 when it expects to launch two new models.
“This year will be a bit like going through a tunnel,” Peter Fleet, Ford’s head of Asia-Pacific operations, told Reuters earlier this year. “We have to get through 2018.”
The China business for Ford has been troubled by its joint venture with the Changan Automobile Group.in the month of March, there was a drop of 22 per cent year-on-year in the sales by Changan Ford Automobile with a total of 46,217 vehicles. At the same time, a drop of 26 per cent in the first quarter of the year with a total sale of 124,459 vehicles.
And despite a rise of 5 per cent year-on-year in the sale of Ford’s vans and other commercial vehicles by the company’s second joint venture with Jiangling Motor Corp (JMC), the first quarter sale dropped by 16 per cent.
The only bright spot for the company is perhaps the rise of 27 per cent in March and 10 percent year-on-year in the sales of Ford’s premium Lincoln brand.
“SUVs, commercial and luxury vehicles are key priorities of our strategy this year,” Fleet said in a statement on Friday.
(Source:www.reuters.com)