Ford's North American Sales Chief Retiring

DETROIT, Sept 20, 2007; Poornima Gupta writing for Reuters reported that Ford Motor Co on Thursday said Francisco Codina, North American sales and marketing chief, will retire as the automaker tries to stem a prolonged decline in U.S. sales.

Ford is beginning an immediate search for his replacement, the company said in a statement.

Codina has been Ford's North American marketing, sales and service chief since early 2006 and will retire on Nov. 1.

Ford's U.S. sales slipped 14 percent in August and were down 13 percent year to date.

Ford, which is on the verge of losing its No. 2 spot in the U.S. market to surging rival Toyota Motor Corp.(7203.T: Quote, Profile, Research), is now working to hold its overall share of the U.S. light-vehicle market at about 14 percent as it restructures by shutting 16 plants and cutting more than 50,000 jobs.

The automaker's current U.S. market share is about 16 percent. Ford has lost about 1 percentage point of its U.S. market share every year since 2000 as consumers moved away from heavier and less fuel-efficient SUVs.

Separately, John Parker, head of Ford's Asia Pacific and Africa region, and Michael Bannister, chairman and chief executive of Ford's finance arm, have been elected as executive vice presidents, the company said.