Ford Motor Company said Friday it will build a new low-cost, small car for the North American market at its Mexican plant as part of a three billion dollar expansion.
The move comes as the company shrinks its US production in the face of declining truck and sport utility vehicle (SUV) sales and is a major blow to the United Auto Workers union, which had campaigned for nearly two years to get Ford to build a new small car in the United States.
"Ford is absolutely committed to leveraging our global assets to accelerate the shift to more fuel-efficient small cars and powertrain technologies that people really want and value," said Ford president and chief executive Alan Mulally, who was in Mexico for the announcement.