Ford revs up for robust sales in GCC

Abu Dhabi: Ford Middle East announced on Tuesday that it expects to close 2010 with 30 per cent growth in vehicle sales across Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) markets over the previous 12 months.

The US automaker also said it predicts the upward trend to continue well into 2011 as it unveiled a range of new products, including the new Ford Mustang in both V6 and V8 versions, at the Abu Dhabi International Motor Show.

Passenger cars led the growth with sales up 33 per cent region-wide based on preliminary 11-month figures and year-end forecasts. Trucks and SUVs also saw an upswing with an increase of 24 per cent over last year.

Larry Prein, Managing Director of Ford Middle East, said: "Abu Dhabi is of growing importance in the UAE and the region; you just need to have a look around to see that it is growing in all directions and we believe the motor show is a perfect chance to expose people in the city to our new Ford products.

Strong performance

"We have had good growth in the GCC; we are up 30 per cent in sales year-on-year and we anticipate a continuing strong performance as new products come into the market. The transformation in our products is clearly being appreciated not just by the experts but most importantly by our customers."

Saudi Arabia posted the strongest regional growth with a massive 40 per cent increase on 2009 sales; trucks and SUV sales are up by 47 per cent and passenger car sales by 36 per cent.

Sales in the UAE were up 10 per cent on last year with the Taurus, Fusion and Mustang proving particularly popular. Kuwait also enjoyed a healthy performance thanks to a 16 per cent rise in the sale of trucks and SUVs.

Hussain Murad, Regional Director of Sales at Ford Middle East, said: "Overall, 2010 has been a very successful year for Ford as we grew our market share and continued to outpace the industry across global and regional markets, and the best is yet to come as we roll out our latest products across the region.

"The new 2011 Ford Edge, the new Mustang with its choice of two engines as well as the Lincoln MKX are leaders in their own categories and feature awesome developments on quality and technologies. We are confident they will hit the right chord almost instantly."

The 2011 Ford Edge made its debut at Gitex in Dubai earlier this year. It features the MyFord driver connect technology, which replaces traditional vehicle buttons, knobs and gauges with LCD screens and five-way controls like those found on cell phones and MP3 players.

Indicators

on growth track

33%

Rise in sales of passenger cars in region

40%

Growth in salesin Saudi Arabia