U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co's two ventures in China have reported year-on-year sales growth for April, indicating the world's biggest auto market has started its recovery from coronavirus-induced lows.
FILE PHOTO: Chongqing Changan Automobile's logo on its CS75 SUV model is pictured at its booth during the Auto China 2016 auto show in Beijing, China, April 26, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonSHANGHAI: U.S. automaker Ford Motor Co's two ventures in China have reported year-on-year sales growth for April, indicating the world's biggest auto market has started its recovery from coronavirus-induced lows.
Ford's main joint venture with Chongqing Changan Automobile Co Ltd sold 20,465 vehicles in April, up 38.3per cent from the same period a year earlier, Changan said in a stock exchange filing on Wednesday.Jiangling Motors Corp Ltd , in which Ford owns a stake, said in a filing on Thursday that it sold 28,028 vehicles in April, up 7.8per cent. JMC sells Ford-branded sport-utility vehicles and vans as well as JMC-branded commercial vehicles.
Ford's China sales fell 34.9per cent to 88,770 vehicles in January-March. During that time, the government imposed restrictions on movement to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus, which has led to over 4,000 deaths in world's second-biggest economy.The two Chinese ventures of Ford rival General Motors Co also reported double-digit growth in April, when many of the government's movement restrictions were relaxed.