Ford Motor Co, the world’s third-largest automaker, unveiled the new Fiesta small car in China, part of its plan to roll out models globally in a bid to cut development costs.
The five-door hatchback will go into production in Nanjing later this year, Ford said in a press release at the Beijing Auto Show yesterday. It didn’t provide a price range or sales target in the statement.
The new Fiesta is the first major product reflecting chief executive officer Alan Mulally’s “One Ford” program, which aims to build closer cooperation among regional units. Ford is seeking to cut costs and boost emerging market sales after posting two straight losses because of slumping US demand.
PHOTO: AP
The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker boosted first-quarter sales in China 47 percent to 90,791 on demand for Focus compacts. The automaker also makes Mondeo sedans, S-MAX minivans and commercial vehicles in China, the world’s second-biggest auto market.
Ford is adding models and capacity in the country to catch up with rivals like General Motors Corp and Volkswagen AG that established local plants earlier. GM and Volkswagen, the two largest overseas automakers in China, both outsold Ford more than two-to-one in the first quarter.
China’s overall vehicle sales rose 21 percent in the first quarter, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said. GM’s sales rose 7.4 percent, while Volkswagen’s jumped 33 percent.
Changan Ford Mazda Automobile Co (長安福特馬自達汽車), Ford’s local passenger-car venture, will build the Fiesta. The venture runs plants in western Chongqing and eastern Nanjing.
It is also studying plans for a third factory.
Chongqing is the likely choice for any expansion, John Parker, Ford’s executive vice president for Asia Pacific and Africa, said on Friday.
Meanwhile, Mazda Motor Corp, a third owned by Ford Motor, will add a revamped Mazda6 and the MX-5 in China within a year, as it bids to boost sales in the world’s most populous country.
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