Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) shares reached a 52-week high, which is a sign Wall Street is willing to forgive the company’s atrocious performance in Europe. The trend also is surprising because Ford does not have a major presence in the world’s largest car market — China.

At $15.28, Ford shares have risen from a 52-week low of $8.82, which means the auto manufacturer has added $50 billion in market value since that trough. Ford’s stock has not been able to outpace that of General Motors (NYSE: GM) over the past year,though. This may be because GM is the leading car company in China, which offers it the promise of tremendous growth outside the injured European Union markets.

In Ford’s favor, it has done better than its major rivals in the United States market this year. Ford’s sales rose by 12.7% in the first four months. GM’s were higher by only 9.8% and Chrysler’s by 8.5%. And sales of Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM), which is supposed to be the turnaround manufacturer of the year, are up only 6.1%. Who cares about Europe?

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