Ford said today it will cut 35,000 jobs worldwide including 22,000 in North America and close five assembly plants in a radical restructuring programme.
Ford spokesman Mr Jim Bright said the company plans to stop production of the Taurus and Sable models at its Chicago plant because of flagging sales, although they will continue to be built at a plant outside Atlanta.
Analysts agree that Ford must find savings of between $4 billion and $5 billion.
Ford's need to restructure represents a change from its position just a year ago, when it reported a profit for 2000 of $6.7 billion.
In the third quarter of 2001, Ford lost $692 million, and it is expected to report its third successive loss-making quarter when it releases its fourth-quarter financial statement on January 17th.
Ford was hit hard last year when it launched a $3 billion programme to replace 13 million Firestone tyres that were not covered by a recall in August, 2000, following reports implicating them in crashes of Explorer four-wheel-drive vehicles.
The company's vehicle sales in 2001 were down 6 per cent on 2000. In August, it announced it hoped to cut 4,000 to 5,000 salaried positions by offering early retirement and buy-out packages.
PA