Ford China posts record sales in August, 39 per cent up from last year

Strong demand for the all-new Ford Focus helped Ford set a new sales record in China last month.

Ford China posted its highest-ever August sales, with 48,631 wholesale units sold, up 39 per cent from last year. Year to date, Ford China has sold 368,513 wholesale
units, up 8 per cent from January-August 2011.

The Ford Focus became the best-selling single nameplate in the world for the first half of 2012, based on global data from IHS Automotive, with 489,616 Focus sedans and hatchbacks sold worldwide in the first half of 2012.

Sales of Ford-brand passenger cars - which include the imported Ford Edge - are also at a record high for August, up 65 per cent with 33,640 wholesale units sold.

Demand for the Ford Mondeo remained strong last month, with sales up 44 per cent in August having sold 4,594 wholesale units, an increase of 12 per cent for the year. The Ford Edge - now equipped with a 2.0-litre EcoBoost engine that delivers up to 20 per cent better fuel economy and 15 per cent CO2 emission reductions - continues to attract Chinese consumers, with sales up 94 per cent for the year.

Ford's record August sales top off a milestone week for Ford in China. Last week, coinciding with a visit from Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally, Ford announced it would bring Lincoln to China, offering its rich and unique heritage to customers seeking a new level of luxury. Lincoln vehicles will be available in China during the second half of 2014. In addition, Mulally broke ground for two new assembly plants, one in Chongqing and one in Hangzhou. The two plants are set to double Ford's production capacity in China to 1.2-million passenger cars annually by 2015 and bring Ford's total investment in China to US$ 4.9-billion.

Sales of Ford-brand passenger cars at Changan Ford Mazda Automobile (CFMA), Ford's passenger car joint-venture partner in China, reached 33,017 wholesale units in August, up 63 per cent from August 2011.

Jiangling Motors Corporation (JMC), Ford's commercial vehicle investment in China, sold 14,991 wholesale units in August, holding steady compared to the same period last year.

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