Ford posts record Q3 China vehicle sales
* Ford Q3 China vehicle sales surge 79 percent on year
* Jan-Sept China car JV sales up 43 percent on year
SHANGHAI, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) said its China vehicle sales in the third quarter jumped 79 percent from a year earlier as Beijing's stimulus policies bolstered auto demand.
Ford, which broke ground for its $490 million third China plant in September, sold a record of 119,338 vehicles in the country in the three-month period, it said in a statement late on Tuesday.
Sales came to 316,639 units in the first nine months, up 32 percent from a year earlier.
Changan Ford Mazda, a tie-up with Chongqing Changan Auto Co (000625.SZ) and Mazda Motor (7261.T), sold 227,839 cars in the first nine months, up 43 percent from a year earlier.
Sales of its all new Fiesta compact car came to 32,178 units since its launch in March, while September sales of its mid-range Focus sedan surged 72 percent to an all-time monthly record of 13,891, it said.
Jiangling Motors Corp Ltd (000550.SZ)(200550.SZ), a commercial vehicle maker partly owned by Ford, sold a record of 82,718 vehicles in the first three quarters, including 23,520 Ford Transit models, it said, without providing comparative figures.
China's auto market, the biggest in the world, is a major bright spot this year helped by government incentive policies.
Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) sold 1.06 million vehicles in China and Hong Kong from January to September, up 37 percent from a year earlier. GM's China sales rose 55.6 percent to 1.29 million during the period. (Reporting by Fang Yan and Jacqueline Wong)
