Ford: Second thoughts about leaving?
Could there be a fresh twist in Ford’s tryst with India? A buzz has risen after reports surfaced of the US-based carmaker’s decision to cancel the planned sale of its Chennai facility to the JSW group that was in an advanced stage of talks. One may be inclined to think this is on account of negotiations breaking down.
But the buzz suggests there is more to it than meets the eye. Ford might be getting FOMO pangs, a fear of missing out on an Indian market boom after it announced its exit from India in 2021.
It did contemplate a smaller presence via local partnerships, but having invested about $2 billion in the country, it must have been in two minds about pulling out. India’s car market is expected to end 2023 with record sales of about 4 million units, and while Ford found it hard to keep up with its Japanese, Korean and Indian rivals, an expanded pie could have given it sufficient volumes to justify local assembly.
Leaving would be a waste of its brand recognition, which is high, and also a let-down for executives who made its Ecosport something of a success. The carmaker should ask itself whether vanishing from the world’s fastest growing major economy constitutes wisdom.
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