Ford overtaking Japanese rivals

Ford Motor Co is poised to overtake its Japanese rivals on the top automakers list in China as Toyota Motor Corp and Honda Motor Co struggle to regain market share following a flare-up in anti-Japanese sentiment a year ago.

For much of the past decade, the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker has languished some way behind Japanese brands.

Ford is fighting to change that picture and appears likely to sell more vehicles in China this year than two of its main Japanese rivals - Toyota and Honda.

Ford is likely to sell more than 900,000 vehicles, including passenger cars and commercial vehicles, in China this year thanks to its beefed-up product lineup, said a company official who spoke on condition of anonymity.