Ford China Sees Three Quarters of Sales Growth in 2020
Photo: Ford
Despite the effects of the pandemic, Ford and its joint ventures in China enter 2021 on a pretty considerable roll. Ford logged a 30.3 percent year-over-year increase in the final quarter of 2020, making three straight quarters of growth for the year. Ford Motor Company China and its trio of JVs — Changan Ford, JMC, and Ford Lio-Ho — combined for sales of 602,627 vehicles in 2020, up 6.1 percent from 2019.
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“Ford’s sales momentum is a reflection of our continued focus to grow in China and deliver on our ‘Best of Ford, Best of China’ commitment,” said Anning Chen, president and CEO, Ford China. “We fully intend to strengthen that momentum with a winning strategy that optimizes our product mix and localizes production of world-class Ford and Lincoln vehicles to meet rising Chinese customer demand.”
Between October and December, sales of Ford-branded vehicles in China rose 24.7 percent from Q4 2019 with approximately 104,000 vehicles delivered. Nearly half that total came from Ford SUVs, which were up 86.5 percent for the quarter at 50,000 sales. And nearly half of that total comes from the twosome of the Ford Explorer and Escape, which accounted for 10,000 and 12,000 sales, respectively.
Ford brand sales totaled more than 324,000 vehicles in 2020, down just 1.2 percent from the previous year. Ford SUV sales increased 32.4 percent in 2020 at 140,000 vehicles delivered.
Lincoln scores record Q4, full year sales in 2020
A big contributor to Ford’s surprisingly strong 2020 was the Lincoln Motor Company brand, which saw sales of 22,600 vehicles in the fourth quarter and 61,700 sales for the entire year. Both were up substantially from 2019 — 74.9 percent and 32.5 percent, respectively — setting new records for sales.
Lincoln SUVs were a major driver of that success, accounting for 20,500 sales in the fourth quarter — up 158.7 percent — and 52,500 sales for the full year — up 96.3 percent. The new Aviator and Corsair, both built locally, accounted for 76 percent of Lincoln’s quarterly sales and 64 percent of its full-year total.
Lincoln aims to have another strong year in 2021 with the launch of the new Nautilus, which is also manufactured in China.
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Kyle S. Johnson lives in Cincinnati, a city known by many as “the Cincinnati of Southwest Ohio.” He enjoys professional wrestling, Halloween, and also other things. He has been writing for a while, and he plans to continue to write well into the future. See more articles by Kyle.