Ford Motor saw a small sales increase at the start of the year, mainly due to a big jump in hybrid vehicle sales. These sales helped balance out an 11% drop in all-electric vehicle sales.
On Friday, Ford reported a 4.3% sales increase in January compared to January 2023. This was driven by a 43% rise in hybrid sales and a 2.6% increase in traditional gasoline vehicle sales. Ford sold a total of 152,617 vehicles in January.
Ford is focusing more on hybrids as demand for them grows. Electric vehicles like the F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E are not selling as well as expected. Mach-E sales dropped by 51%, and F-150 Lightning sales fell slightly.
Ford’s hybrid vehicle sales jumped 43% in January, offsetting an 11% decline in all-electric vehicle sales.
However, Ford is boosting production of its E-Transit electric van, which saw sales rise to over 1,100 units in January, up from less than 400 last year.
Despite the focus on hybrids, 90% of Ford’s January sales were traditional vehicles. Hybrids, led by the Ford Maverick, made up 7.3% of sales. Electric vehicles made up about 3%, with fewer than 5,000 units sold.
Sales of Ford’s F-Series pickups, which are very profitable, fell by about 12% to around 48,700 units last month.
Ford announced its January sales just before its fourth-quarter and year-end earnings report, which will be released on Tuesday.
Earlier this week, General Motors, a competitor, reported results and 2024 forecasts that were better than expected. GM’s stock rose more than 7% this year, while Ford’s stock has fallen about 1% in 2024.
