Ford Motor Company has spent years navigating one of the most complicated markets in the global automotive industry, and its approach is finally producing results.
Chinese automakers have rapidly evolved from students of foreign automotive expertise into fierce global competitors, particularly in the electric vehicle segment, reshaping the entire industry landscape.
Bank of America securities analyst John Murphy warned over two years ago, “I think you have to see the [Detroit Three] exit China as soon as they possibly can,” at his annual presentation of the closely watched industry report “Car Wars.”
Rather than exit, Ford chose a fundamentally different path, repurposing its Chinese joint ventures with Changan Automobile and Jiangling Motors as export hubs serving global markets.
Made-in-China vehicles including the Equator Sport crossover, Mondeo sedan, Lincoln Nautilus SUV, and electric commercial vans now reach Southeast Asia, the Middle East, South America, and Europe.
Ford suffered six consecutive years of financial losses in China from 2018 through 2023, a painful streak that put enormous pressure on the company’s international operations.
In 2024, Ford reversed that trend and posted roughly $600 million in earnings from the region, driven largely by its pivot toward exports rather than competing directly in China’s brutal domestic market.
The company’s “In China, for the World” strategy now includes exporting its Ford Transit City from China to 52 countries and regions across five continents, significantly broadening the model’s global reach.
Ford has also entered a pending joint venture with Chinese automaker Geely to build vehicles at a Ford plant in Spain, with operations targeted to begin in the first half of 2027 and new vehicles planned for 2028.
Ford is set to own 66% of that European joint venture, with Geely holding the remaining 34%, and the arrangement is expected to produce a new Ford EV crossover, a new Bronco family member, and two electric Geely SUVs.
The partnership gives Ford direct access to the methods Chinese manufacturers use to dramatically accelerate and cheapen vehicle development, a process the industry typically completes in 40 to 80 months that Chinese automakers compress into just 18 to 24 months.
For Geely, the deal provides access to underutilized legacy manufacturing capacity in Europe, offering a faster and more cost-effective path to expansion than building new factories or absorbing margin-eroding tariffs.
Ford’s crosstown rival General Motors (NYSE: GM) faces similar pressures in China, and both Detroit automakers are determined to prevent Chinese competitors from encroaching on their profitable U.S. home market.
By learning what analysts describe as “China Speed” in design and manufacturing, Ford positions itself to compete more effectively against lower-cost rivals across every market where it sells vehicles.
Ford’s dual strategy of exporting from China while simultaneously forming joint ventures to absorb Chinese production knowledge represents one of the more pragmatic responses any legacy Western automaker has mounted to the industry’s shifting power dynamics.
