AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)08/05 Report--

On the evening of August 4, Ford announced that Jim Farley, the current COO, will succeed Jim Hackett as the company's new president and chief executive on October 1. Hankite, who has led the company's transformation since 2017, plans to retire from the company. It is understood that in the next two months, 65-year-old Hankett and 58-year-old Jim Farley will work closely to ensure a smooth transition.

According to the data, Jim Farley joined Ford in November 2007, initially served as president of global marketing, and was in charge of the Lincoln brand and Ford's operations in South America, Europe and Ford's global markets. Jim Farley became the leader of Ford Motor Company's emerging business, technology and strategy team in April 2019. In February 2020, Jim Farley became Ford's chief operating officer, reporting to Hankette, the company's president and CEO.

In fact, it is "certain" that Jim Farley will succeed Han Kate as CEO of the company. Back in March, Ford disclosed an unrestricted corporate stock grant resolution in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The resolution said that if Jim Farley did not succeed Han Kate as the next CEO, the board would benefit from its $2.5 million worth of unrestricted company stock, which would not be granted if Jim Farley was rejected after Ford appointed CEO.

However, it was a bit of a surprise for Ford to choose this time frame to appoint a new CEO, after all, it was only three years after Han Kate took up the CEO position. But it can also be seen from the side that Hankite has lost the trust of investors. According to the survey, Ford's share price has fallen 40% since Hankite became CEO in May 2017.

Ford handed in a disappointing report card this past 2019. According to the data, Ford's global sales fell 7.7% to 4.9 million vehicles in 2019 compared with the same period last year, of which the Chinese market declined for three consecutive years, falling 26.1% to 567900 vehicles, directly causing Ford to lose $771 million in the Chinese market.

Ford's total operating income in 2019 was $155.9 billion, down 3% from a year earlier; net profit was $47 million, down 98.7% from a year earlier, including a loss of $704 million in South America, $47 million in Europe, $23 million in Asia Pacific and $142 million in the Middle East and Africa.

Ford's performance has shrunk sharply as a result of the outbreak's intrusion into the global market. According to the results, Ford's operating income fell 14.9% to $34.3 billion in the first quarter, with a net loss of $1.99 billion and an adjusted profit before interest and tax of $632 million. Ford's operating income fell 50% to $19.4 billion in the second quarter. Thanks to Volkswagen's stake in self-driving business Ford made a net profit of $1.17 billion and an adjusted profit before interest and tax of $1.9 billion.

Judging from Ford's performance, whether in the global market or in various regions, Ford has failed to produce a satisfactory answer, especially under the influence of the epidemic, Ford's performance is really worrying. Fortunately, China, Ford's second-largest market, was the first to recover from the epidemic. Thanks to the localization of Ford's Ruiji model and Lincoln, China has become the only region where Ford has achieved growth in the global market. Ford's sales in China fell 34.9 per cent to 88770 vehicles in the first quarter and resumed growth of 3 per cent to 158589 vehicles in the second quarter, according to the data.

Obviously, the new leader still has a lot of problems to face in the future, and he also places high hopes on investors to reverse Ford's predicament, but whether they can "live up to expectations" remains to be seen.

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