Ford announced on Friday this its first-half sales in Europe totaled 617,600 vehicles, representing a 10.3 percent drop off compared to the same period in 2011. Ford ended the period with a 16.1 percent sales decline during the month of June.
"The economic environment remains very difficult, obviously, and we are balancing the need to be price competitive, while remaining committed to improving net pricing, building brand strength and protecting residual values," said Roelant de Waard, vice president, Marketing, Sales and Services, Ford of Europe.
There were a few bright spots on Ford's sales chart - the Blue Oval was actually up 1 percent in Great Britain - but the overall results paint bleak picture for the rest of 2012. Ford's 10.3 percent first-half sales decline outpaced the overall market's 7.1 percent regression, and the figures were even worse in June. Whereas Ford's sales dropped 16.1 percent during the month, the overall market saw only a slight 2.7 percent decline.
Ford has already braced investors for a $600 million loss in the European market, forcing the company's stock to a near three-year low.
