Ford Motor says China sales rise 30 pct in 2007

SHANGHAI, Jan 9 (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co's (F.N) retail sales in China rose 30 percent to 216,324 vehicles last year, outpacing growth in the overall Chinese car market, the company said on Wednesday.

Sales of Ford brand cars climbed 26 percent to 196,221 vehicles, helped by strong demand for the mid-sized Ford Focus, whose sales jumped 57 percent.

Meanwhile, retail sales of Ford's Volvo, Jaguar and Land Rover brands rose 84 percent to 20,103 vehicles.

In the first 11 months of this year, car sales in China climbed 23 percent from a year earlier to 5.66 million, according to the most recent data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Ford also said its joint venture with Chongqing Changan Auto Co (200625.SZ)(000625.SZ) and Mazda Motor Corp (7261.T) saw its wholesale sales volume rise by 60 percent to 217,100 cars last year. (Reporting by Andrew Torchia, editing by Ken Wills) (andrew.torchia@reuters.com; (8621) 6104-1761))