The sales of Ford Motor Co. fell nearly 3% in the fourth quarter as sales of the F-150 star were hit by the halt to a pandemic that led to the release of the latest version of the pickup, the carmaker said Wednesday.
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total sales reached about 4.3 million vehicles in the quarter, down 2.8% in the fourth quarter of 2019, the company said.
Total vehicle sales in the U.S. fell nearly 10% to 542,749 units, with truck sales up more than 12% and SUV sales up 4%.
Sales of Ford’s all-new 2021 F-150, the decades-best-selling vehicle in the US, began in December.
“Ford sales were affected by lower F-150 inventory due to the long-term effects of the Q2 production disruption of the coronavirus leading to the brand new F-150 transition,” the company said.
Sales of the Ford Super Duty pickup maintained a strong sales pace, rising 14.1%, while sales of the F-150 declined by nearly 33%, the carmaker said.
Ford calls the quarter a “turning point” as its sedan sales in the U.S. decline and sales of newly redesigned pickups and SUVs begin.
Several automakers are expected to have significant declines for last year, stopping a five-year period in which U.S. sales exceeded 17 million vehicles annually.
General Motors Co. GM,
reported rising total sales in the fourth quarter on Tuesday, but sales fell by 12% in 2020.
See also: GM sales fell for the year, but fell to pre-pandemic levels in the fourth quarter
Tesla Inc. TSLA,
reported on Saturday that in 2020 it would manufacture more than half a million vehicles and deliver 499,550 of these during the year, in line with the automaker’s pre-pandemic guidance.
Shares of Ford have lost nearly 4% over the past twelve months, in contrast to the 16% rise for the S&P 500 index. SPX,