Ford Motor (NYSE: F ) Co will stop selling the Transit Connect van in the United States at the end of next year and scrapped plans to build the next model of the vehicle in Mexico, Automotive News reported on Tuesday.
US sales of the Transit Connect van have been falling for some time, and Ford said last year it could face penalties of up to $1.3 billion in a long-running dispute over import duties paid on the vehicles.
Sales were down 15% through July in the US, after falling 25% last year. (https://ford.to/3AFWmUF)
The automaker will stop importing the van for the US market by the end of next year, the report said, citing people with knowledge of the decision. (https://
Ford declined to comment on the report.
The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker had reported better-than-expected second-quarter net income last month and reaffirmed its full-year profit outlook, but said it was “actively looking” at how to offset the rising costs.
The company announced Monday that it will cut a total of 3,000 salaried and contract jobs, mostly in North America and India, in its race to develop software-based electric vehicles.