Ford's sales in China up 6% in 2020

Ford Motor Co. sold 602,627 vehicles in China last year, up 6 percent from 2019, to mark its first annual growth in the world’s biggest car market since 2017.

The American carmaker posted impressive numbers in the past three months, selling 190,916 vehicles for a 30 percent increase from the same period last year.

Ford’s China sales began faltering in late 2017 after peaking at 1.08 million units in 2016.

In China, Ford manufactures cars through Jiangling Motors Corp Ltd (JMC), its joint venture with Chongqing Changan Automobile Co Ltd.

The automaker shut down its plant at Louisville, Kentucky, this week due to an industry-wide semiconductor shortage, which is expected to spread to other auto plants in the coming months.

Ford employs 3,800 hourly workers in its Louisville plant who will receive about 75 percent of their usual pay during the shutdown.

The plant assembles the Escape and the Corsair.

Ford will also close its three plants in Brazil this year as part of the $11 billion global restructurings.