Ford reports growth in demand
Ford Thailand, the local arm of US carmaker Ford Motor Co, reported its second quarter sales jumped 34% year-on-year to 12,575 vehicles, driven by continued growth in demand for the Ranger pickup truck and Everest mid-size SUV.
Ford’s quarterly sales results translated into an overall market share gain of 1.3 percentage points to 6.3% for the April-June period, marking Ford’s highest-ever quarterly market share.
“The Ranger and Everest continue to generate an increasingly wider and stronger appeal among Thai consumers across the country, allowing them to continue outperforming their respective segments,” said Narong Sritalayon, deputy managing director at Ford Thailand.
The segment-defining Ranger drove Ford’s overall growth in the second quarter with sales increasing 45% to 9,748 vehicles.
The Ranger’s segment share rose a remarkable 3.7 percentage points from the same quarter last year to 12.2%.
The Ranger line-up in Thailand features 24 different models — from the high-series Wildtrak and premium Ranger FX4, to the more utilitarian XL and XLS variants — giving customers choice in Thailand’s highly competitive pickup truck segment.
The Ranger’s year-to-date sales have increased 51% to 20,230 vehicles, positioning it firmly as the number three pickup
truck in the Thai market.
Second quarter sales of the Everest increased 7% to 1,883 vehicles, helping its segment share for the April-June period rise 1.2 percentage points from last year to 13.5%.
Year-to-date sales of Everest have now risen 14% to 3,647 vehicles.
The EcoSport compact SUV, meanwhile, saw its second quarter sales rise 41% yearon-year to 815 vehicles, helping its segment share jump 4.6 percentage points from the same quarter last year to 11.3%.
Year-to-date sales of the EcoSport have risen 36% to 1,278 vehicles.
Ford’s year-to-date sales have soared 41% to 25,513 vehicles, helping it again become one of the fastest growing automotive brands in Thailand this year.
“To support our fast-growing customer
base, we’re continuing efforts to further enhance our overall customer experience at Ford dealerships across the country, including showroom upgrades, aftersales initiatives that increase customer convenience, and comprehensive sales and technician training initiatives,” said Mr Narong.
Thailand produces the Ranger pickup, Everest and EcoSport SUVs, and Fiesta and Focus hatchbacks to serve 180 markets worldwide.
Last year, Ford reported overall sales at 40,972 vehicles, up by 12.4%. The Ranger was Ford’s main contributor at 30,756 vehicles, up by 29%, while the Everest sales rose by 42% to 7,111 vehicles.
In Thailand, Ford sold 525 Focus passenger cars in 2016, down by 44%, and 409 Fiestas, down by 86.8%.