Ford’s October Sales in China Reflect Cooling Demand in the Country

Amid rising trade tensions this year, automotive sales in China have been trending downward, a point emphasized by Ford Motor Co.’s recently released China sales figures for October.
Need buying strategies for steel? Request your two-month free trial of MetalMiner’s Outlook
The Detroit automaker on Tuesday released its October sales numbers for the Chinese market, showing total sales of 58,204 units. The October sales total marked a 45% year-over-year decline.
The October marked marked the second-straight month of sales dropping in excess of 40% year over year (sales fell 43% year over year in September). August sales dropped 36% year over year.
“As part of our 2025 Plan, Ford is rolling out its first wave of our exciting new vehicles, designed especially to meet the needs of Chinese customers,” said Anning Chen, president and CEO of Ford Greater China, in a release. “The all-new Ford Focus and new Escort hit showrooms this month and the all-new Territory will follow soon. We believe our future product line-up will help us to regain our sales momentum in this important market and serve as a testament to our commitment to China.”
The down October sales total continued what has been a down year in the Chinese market.
In the year to date, the automaker has sold 642,593 units, marking a 31% decline from the January-October 2017 period.
Broken down further, the Changan Ford Automobile brand — a 50:50 joint venture between Ford and Changan Automobile — saw its October sales fall 58% year over year and drop 43% in the year to date. Jiangling Motors Co. saw its October sales fall 17% year over year and 8% in the year to date.
Meanwhile, the Lincoln brand, while down in October, has come in on the positive side of the ledger for Ford this year.
Lincoln sales were down 6% year over year in October, but are up 3% in the year to date. Earlier this year, Reuters reported Ford’s Lincoln brand plans to build as many as five new vehicles in China by 2022.
MetalMiner’s Annual Outlook provides 2019 buying strategies for carbon steel
Last month, Reuters reported automotive sales in China fell in September by the greatest amount in nearly seven years. September sales in China fell 11.6% year over year, according to the report.