On June 19, Jiangling Motors issued a statement firmly denying the rumor that its joint – venture brand, Jiangling Ford, would be integrated into Changan Ford. Recently, online articles claimed that Jiangling Ford was set to be absorbed into the Changan Ford system for resource integration, with some even speculating that there would be only “one Ford” brand in the Chinese market in the future. However, Jiangling Motors made it clear that there are currently no plans for asset restructuring or integration and declined to comment on unfounded rumors and speculations.
Jiangling Ford and Changan Ford are the two major joint – venture brands of the US automotive giant Ford in China, with Jiangling Group and Changan Automobile as the Chinese shareholders respectively. Both brands face difficulties in slow – paced new energy product layout and high transformation pressure. Jiangling Ford mainly focuses on the commercial vehicle segment with a relatively single product line, while Changan Ford, despite introducing electric models like the Mustang Mach – E, has seen lackluster market performance.
In terms of sales data, Jiangling Ford sold about 35,000 passenger vehicles in 2024, experiencing a year – on – year decline for two consecutive years. Changan Ford sold 247,000 units in 2024, a 6.0% year – on – year increase, but still far from its peak of 944,000 units in 2016. Overall, Ford’s joint – venture brands in China underperform compared to brands like Volkswagen, Toyota, and Mercedes – Benz, and even lag behind General Motors, another American brand.
Although some analysts believe that combining the operations of Jiangling Ford and Changan Ford, which have different product focuses, could optimize the product portfolio and reduce costs and increase efficiency, and there are precedents for joint – venture brand mergers, such as the integration of Changan Mazda and FAW Mazda, neither Jiangling Motors nor Ford China has made any statements on this. Ford China also said it would not comment on baseless rumors and speculations.
Jiangling Motors is currently in a profitable stage. In 2024, its revenue reached 38.37 billion yuan, a 15.7% year – on – year increase, and its net profit was 1.54 billion yuan, a 4.2% year – on – year growth. However, the continuous decline in Jiangling Ford’s sales has brought uncertainties to Jiangling Motors’ future. To address this, Jiangling Motors plans to build a new energy platform to enhance Jiangling Ford’s competitiveness. It is expected to start production of a new electric – platform SUV project in the second half of 2025, aiming to sell 390,000 vehicles and achieve an operating income of over 40 billion yuan in 2025.
Analysts believe that the sluggish electrification transformation of Ford’s joint – venture brands is related to Ford’s own slow progress in electrification. Ford’s losses in its electric vehicle business have been continuously expanding, increasing to $5.1 billion in 2024 and expected to rise to as high as $5.5 billion in 2025. Whether the merger rumor is true or not, Jiangling Ford faces significant market pressure.
