Ford plans factory in eastern China

U.S.-based Ford Motor Co. said it will build a US$760 million factory in eastern China. The Hangzhou factory will be part of the company’s Changan Ford Mazda Automobile joint venture. Ford said the Hangzhou factory—it will be the only automaker in this coastal town—will be operational by 2015. Earlier this month, the company said it will spend US$600 million to expand a factory in Chongqing. The Chongqing plant will be capable of producing 950,000 vehicles a year, up from 600,000 units. It will be Ford’s biggest manufacturing presence outside of southeast Michigan in the United States. With these planned expansions, Ford, which currently has a 3% market share, will be capable of building 1.2 million passenger cars a year in China. The company estimates that about 1.2 billion Chinese consumers will be in the market for a new vehicle in 2020, up from 708 million in 2010. (April 19, 2012)