AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)01/13 Report--

Ford Motor Company released sales figures for the Chinese market, which fell 26.1% year-on-year to 567854 vehicles in 2019. Of these, Ford sold 146473 vehicles in China in the fourth quarter of 2019, down 14.7 per cent from a year earlier.

There is no doubt that Ford's performance in the Chinese market is once again at a low ebb, with sales falling for three consecutive years since 2017. According to the data, Ford's total sales in China reached 1.27 million in 2016, the highest since entering China. Since then, due to problems such as slow product updates, Ford missed the opportunity for sustained growth and lost half of its sales in three years. It is down 55.4% from its peak in 2016.

Ford China is composed of Changan Ford, Ford brand imported cars, Jiangling Motor, Lincoln brand and other businesses. Jiangling Motor accounted for the largest share of sales, with total sales of 236000 vehicles in 2019, down 10.4 per cent from a year earlier, according to Ford. Ford owns 32% of Jiangling Motor, which owns the JMC brand and Ford brand.

In addition, Changan Ford is Ford's fastest declining business. According to a sales report released by Changan Automobile, a joint venture partner, Changan Ford sold only 184000 vehicles in 2019, down 51 per cent from a year earlier.

In 2019, Ford accelerated the operation of its business in China, seeking to reverse the decline in performance and sales. In terms of executive team, in 2019, Ford formed a new leadership team composed of local talent, with Chen Anning as the head of Ford Motor Company Group Vice President, President and CEO of Ford Motor (China) Co., Ltd. After taking office, Chen Anning successively recruited former Bowo executives such as Yang Song, Huo Jing and Xiong Yi to join.

In terms of products, Ford launched new models in 2019, including the new Fox Active, the new Ruijie ST/ST-Line SUV, the new Taurus, the Ford F-150LTD pickup truck, and the pure electric SUV leading EV. At the end of 2019, Changan Ford officially launched its new compact SUV- Ruiji, which is equipped with 2.0T turbocharged engine + 8AT gearbox, with a price range of 18.98-218800 yuan. The strategy of high configuration and low price is regarded as an important step for Changan Ford to seek recovery.

According to the Ford China Product 330 Plan, Ford China will launch more than 30 new models in the Chinese market in the next three years, covering Ford and Lincoln brands, as well as 10 new energy models. In 2020, Ford explorers will be domestically made in Changan Ford, and medium and large-sized SUV of Lincoln brand will also be made domestically, among which Changan Lincoln adventurers will be put on the market in the first quarter of 2020.

Ford had earlier predicted that its loss before interest and tax would be nearly halved in 2019 from a year earlier. Among them, Ford lost $281 million (about 1.94 billion yuan) before interest and tax in the Chinese market in the first three quarters. Ford believes that its performance in China will continue to improve.

Ford is still struggling in China. With the launch of Ruiji and more domestic models, the problem of poor delivery of Ford products will be alleviated, but whether the products have sustained market competitiveness remains to be seen.

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