For a long time the words Ford, Europe and profits were strangers as the firm's car business failed to translate popularity into income. Even its money-making van business couldn’t staunch the red ink in the region.
Now, however, after Ford dramatically slimmed down the car business and poured investment into vans, the company’s profitable joint-venture partnership that builds Ford Transits in Turkey is turning into a goldmine for its partners as its annual production capacity approaches almost a million vehicles.
Last year Ford Otosan – a 50:50 partnership between Ford and Turkey’s Koc Holdings – made a profit of the equivalent of £1.1 billion on revenues of £10.1 billion, both a record.
The resulting 10.7%