Car Reviews

Dearborn, MI, United States (AHN) – Automaker Ford has announced sales that total 1.935 million vehicles sold, marking a 19 percent increase for the carmaker over last year’s figures. The company’s market share is also up for the second year in a row and is the first back-to-back increase since 1993.

Ford’s December retail sales were up 17 percent versus a year ago; total sales of 190,976 were up 7 percent.

Ford’s U.S. market share in 2010 is estimated at 16.4 percent, up 1.1 points from 2009 and 2.2 points from 2008.

“With our balanced line of high-quality, fuel-efficient products, we have a solid foundation to deliver more sales and improved results in 2011,” said Ken Czubay, Ford vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service. “Consideration for Ford is increasing beyond our traditional areas of strength – signaling that the seeds of growth already have taken hold.”

Car retail sales increased 26 percent fuelled by record monthly sales for the all-new Ford Fiesta subcompact (5,212) and higher retail sales for the Ford Focus and Fusion and Lincoln MKZ.

In 2010, Ford benefited from its full line of cars, utilities and trucks. For the year, cars were up 17 percent, utilities were up 13 percent and trucks were up 27 percent.

Among cars, the Fusion midsize sedan set a record with sales of 219,219, up 21 percent versus a year ago. Sales for the Taurus, Ford’s full-size sedan, were up 51 percent. Sales for the Focus, Ford’s popular small sedan, were up 7 percent. Fiesta debuted last summer and posted 2010 sales of 23,273.

Ford’s small utility vehicle the Escape had sales totaling 191,026 up 10 percent over 2009′s figures. the Edge, Ford’s midsize crossover, had 118,637 sales, up 34 percent.

Sales for Ford’s F-Series truck were 528,349, up 28 percent. The F-Series was the best-selling truck in America for the 34th year in a row and the best-selling vehicle, car or truck, for the 29th year in a row.

Ford expects the global economy to expand 3 to 4 percent in 2011 and global sales to be in the range of 75 to 85 million – a record sales level. In 2010, global auto sales are estimated at 72 million, which was 11 percent higher than the 65 million sales recorded in 2009.

In the U.S., Ford expects the economy to expand 3 to 4 percent in 2011 and industry sales to be in the range of 12.5 to 13.5 million.

“The global economy is reaching a dynamic phase,” said Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, Ford’s chief economist. “Several indicators in key markets around the world suggest the potential for industry sales to continue to grow.”

The Dearborn, Mich. Based company manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. The company has nearly 163,000 employees and about 70 plants worldwide.

View full post on Economy, Business And Finance Stories