Ford Mulls Sale of Volvo

Ford Motor Co., pressured by losses, is planning to sell the Swedish car producer, Volvo.

A possible buyer could be Germany’s BMW, says a Swedish daily, Goteborgs Posten. 

According to the daily, a source close to Ford has said that the BMW is considering purchasing Volvo. London’s Financial Times last week reported that BMW is conducting unofficial negotiations on purchasing Volvo.

“We cannot comment on these speculations, that is a question for our owner”, Volvo’s spokeswoman said.

America’s Ford purchased Volvo in 1999 and it has been part of its company Premier Automotive Group, together with Jaguar and Land Rover.

Although Ford does not issue business results of its individual brands, its total luxury vehicles business in 2006 registered losses in the amount of 327 million dollars.

According to an estimate by the Merrill Lynch consulting company, Ford could collect more than nine billion dollars with the sale of the rest luxury vehicles brands.

Frederik Arp, CEO at Volvo Cars, told the Reuters agency in March that Ford was dedicated to keeping the Swedish car producer under its control.