Ford won’t be launching an all-new car in India till 2020, there will be updates to existing cars though.
Ford’s vehicles like the EcoSport and the Freestyle have been known to be excellent driver’s cars because of their handling and steering feel and feedback. The Ford Endeavour too has been a huge success in the premium SUV segment with its go anywhere nature and a long feature list. But sadly, all these high praises haven’t been able to get the company a good profit.
Ford, in fact, had even cut its costs by about 37 percent in 2016 and a further 9 percent in 2017 but still hasn’t been able to get a solid profit. This has forced the company to provide its employees with only one out of the two (March and October) increments that it generally pays them as part of compensation against inflation. Not only this, but Ford has even slowed down its hiring process. Multiple important positions remain vacant. Its India Headquarters which were based in Cyber City, Gurgaon too have been shifted to a smaller facility in the same city.
The statistics are especially concerning for Ford as India is considered to be a rapidly growing market. It is to be noted however that Ford’s export business is doing well and it actually accounts for nearly 65 percent of the company’s profit. The rest is provided by its India sales. Its exports are in fact nearly double the sales.
In response to this, Ford India has also decided to not introduce an all-new, independent platform car here till 2020. If a car is required, then it will be in a joint venture with Mahindra. Ford will however, launch the updated version of the Figo, Aspire, Endeavour and Mustang in the next 1 year.
This news is kind of surprising as Ford is nearly twenty years old in India. The company has enjoyed a decent following here and has always been known for making fun-to-drive cars. However, choices are galore in the Indian market and competition has become tough.
New Ford Car Launch
– The company has decided against introducing a new car in India till 2020
– The decision comes as it is faced with dwindling sales
– Cost-cutting measures like no increment for the employees and slow hiring already in place
Source – TimesOfIndia.com
