Ford to start building electric Mustangs in China
In March last year, Ford unveiled its first made-in-China Lincoln car, but compared to its premium rivals, the company remains a minor player in the Chinese industry. "Ford China 2.0," a strategy that promised more goods tailored to local tastes, was introduced in 2019.
For the first time, Ford is to begin constructing its famous Mustang cars in China. As it aims to tap into China's electric vehicle (EV) market, the US carmaker said its Mustang Mach-E will begin producing there later this year. Tesla began shipping its Model Y to Chinese customers from its Shanghai factory earlier this month. Western brands are targeting China vigorously, where EV sales are expected to rise strongly. Volkswagen said the delivery of vehicles built at two newly established Chinese factories dedicated to electric cars will soon begin. With more than 20m vehicles sold per year, China is the world's largest car market. On Thursday, on the back of a strong turnaround in the global car market led by China, Germany's Daimler reported strong company results for 2020.
The company's turnaround in China was praised by Daimler boss Ola Källenius as almost "too good to be true" Ford is also hoping to capitalise on China's economic recovery and the drive for more electric cars on its roads by the Chinese government. The latest electric-powered Mustang is a sport utility vehicle (SUV), seen as an opportunity to reverse years of slow sales in China and communicate with consumers by manufacturing them locally. Mustang sports cars have only been available as expensive imports in China so far. In March last year, Ford unveiled its first made-in-China Lincoln car, but compared to its premium rivals, the company remains a minor player in the Chinese industry. "Ford China 2.0," a strategy that promised more goods tailored to local tastes, was introduced in 2019.
A large cash infusion from a Chinese carmaker Geely and a group of state-owned companies was given to California-based electric carmaker Faraday Future on Thursday. Faraday Future (FF) was created and touted as the next Tesla by failed Chinese tycoon Jia Yueting. Approximately 30 institutional investors from China, the United States and Europe are investing $1 billion (£730 million) in the carmaker, with plans to list its shares publicly. The venture will finance the manufacture of the FF91, an electric luxury car that was originally unveiled in 2017. In 2019, founder Jia Yueting filed for personal bankruptcy and stepped down as Faraday's chief executive, named after Michael Faraday, the British scientist who discovered electromagnetism.
