The Ford logo is pictured on the rooftop of Austria's Ford head branch in Vienna March 19, 2013. 
 
 SYDNEY | 
 
 SYDNEY (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) said on Thursday it is closing its two Australian auto plants and will cease production in the country in October 2016. 
 
 Ford Australia Chief Executive Bob Graziano said the company will close its engine plant in Geelong and its assembly plant in Broadmeadows, both in the state of Victoria. 
 
 The car manufacturer has struggled with sliding sales, high costs and a strong Australian dollar. 
 
 (Reporting By Jane Wardell; Editing by Michael Perry) ||||| Article Excerpt 
 
 GEELONG, Australia—Ford Motor Co. said it would stop producing cars in Australia in three years, foreshadowing hefty job losses in a setback for a government that has invested heavily in propping up the country's automobile industry. 
 
 The U.S.-based auto maker said it would end more than 90 years of car production in Australia in October 2016, resulting in 1,200 job losses. It cited unsustainably high business costs, with wages singled out as a particular concern. 
 
 "The business case simply didn't stack up," Ford Australia's Chief Executive Bob Graziano said. "Our costs are double that of Europe and nearly four times ... ||||| WASHINGTON/DETROIT (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) plans to shrink its salaried workforce in North America and Asia by about 10 percent as it works to boost profits and its sliding stock price, a source familiar with the plan told Reuters on Monday. 
 
 A person briefed on the plan said Ford plans to offer generous early retirement incentives to reduce its salaried headcount by Oct. 1, but does not plan cuts to its hourly workforce or its production. 
 
 The move could put the U.S. automaker on a collision course with President Donald Trump, who has made boosting auto employment a top priority. Ford has about 30,000 salaried workers in the United States. 
 
 The cuts are part of a previously announced plan to slash costs by $3 billion, the person said, as U.S. new vehicles auto sales have shown signs of decline after seven years of consecutive growth since the end of the Great Recession. 
 
 The Wall Street Journal reported Monday evening that Ford plans to cut 10 percent of its 200,000-person global workforce, but the person briefed on the plan disputed that figure. The source requested anonymity in order to be able to discuss the matter freely. 
 
 Ford declined to comment on any job cuts but said it remains focused on its core strategies to “drive profitable growth”. 
 
 “Reducing costs and becoming as lean and efficient as possible also remain part of that work,” it said in a statement. “We have not announced any new people efficiency actions, nor do we comment on speculation.” 
 
 Ford plans to emphasize the voluntary nature of the staff reductions. Ford said April 27 when it reported first-quarter earnings that it planned to cut $3 billion in costs. 
 
 “We are continuing our intense focus on cost and the reason for that is not only mindful of the current environment that we’re in, but also I think preparing us even more for a downturn scenario,” Chief Executive Mark Fields told analysts in a conference call at that time. 
 
 JOBS JOBS JOBS 
 
 During his election campaign President Trump was highly critical of the auto industry’s use of Mexican plants to produce vehicles for the U.S. market. 
 
 Since taking office, Trump has regularly focused on creating jobs in sectors like the automotive industry, though he has released few concrete plans to do so. 
 
 Following criticism from Trump, in January Ford scrapped plans to build a $1.6 billion car factory in Mexico and instead added 700 jobs in Michigan. 
 
 The logo of Ford is seen during the 87th International Motor Show at Palexpo in Geneva, Switzerland March 8, 2017. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann 
 
 In March, Ford said it would invest $1.2 billion in three Michigan facilities and create 130 jobs in projects largely in line with a previous agreement with the United Auto Workers union. 
 
 Trump pounced on that announcement before Ford could release its plans. 
 
 “Major investment to be made in three Michigan plants,” Trump posted on Twitter. “Car companies coming back to U.S. JOBS! JOBS! JOBS!”
– Starting in October 2016, Ford will no longer produce vehicles in Australia, the company says. "Our costs are double that of Europe and nearly four times Ford in Asia," says Ford Australia CEO Bob Graziano. Facing struggling sales and citing high wages, the firm will close its two plants in Victoria state, Reuters reports. The move will cut 1,200 jobs, the Wall Street Journal adds, noting that the company has made cars in the country since 1925. Last month, a strong Australian dollar pushed General Motors' Aussie operation to announce it would slash 500 jobs.