Ford is Europe’s No. 2 Brand, Top Commercial Vehicle Brand in First Quarter
Ford Kuga Vignale
Ford closed out the first quarter of 2018 as the No. 2 brand in Europe with sales of 382,900 vehicles and an 8% market share across its traditional 20 European markets. Over the first three months of the year, Ford both maintained its status as the top single nameplate brand in the United Kingdom and saw its SUV sales rise by 15%.
Ford’s March sales in the Euro 20 were down 12.4% at 175,500 vehicles delivered, and its total vehicle market share fell 0.7 percentage points to 8.5%. Passenger vehicle sales for the month totaled 132,500 units, down 15.4%, and market share fell 0.9 percentage points to 7.5%. Commercial vehicle sales were down 1.6% at 43,100 units, but market share gained 0.3 percentage points to hit 15.2%.
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“March was another strong month for Ford SUVs and commercial vehicles. Going forward, we expect our passenger car market share to exceed prior year with the increasing deliveries of the new Fiesta, new EcoSport, and soon, the eagerly anticipated all-new Focus.”
Ford reports that it saw sales growth in 13 key markets throughout its Euro 50 over the first quarter, including 36.1% growth in Russia and 17.7% growth in the Netherlands. In terms of volume, Ford’s five biggest markets through March are Britain, Germany, Italy, France, and Spain. In terms of market share, Ford’s top five are Britain, Hungary, Ireland, Turkey, and Finland.
In addition to a 15% boost in sales for SUVs throughout Europe, Ford also reported that 73% of all passenger car sales in its Euro 20 belonged to high-series vehicles like the Titanium, Vignale, and ST. With sales totaling 93,200 vehicles through March, the highest total the automaker has seen in a first quarter since 1993, Ford stands as the top commercial vehicle brand in Europe.
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