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Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Following in the footsteps of GM which announced on Monday the sale of its 3% stake in Japanese carmaker Suzuki for $230m, Ford said that it will sell a portion of its ownership stake in Mazda in a desperate attempt to raise cash to survive through the economic crisis. The troubled U.S. automaker, which owns 33.4% of Mazda, will sell about a 20% stake to Mazda and several of its strategic business partners. The sales of the Mazda shares will net Ford approximately $540 million. The two companies said in separate statements that they will continue their ongoing joint ventures, as well as the sharing of platforms and powertrains.
"This agreement allows Ford to raise capital that will help fund our product-led transformation, and at the same time, allows Ford and Mazda to continue our successful strategic relationship in the best interest of both companies," said Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally. "Ford will continue to focus on the Ford brand worldwide and deliver the products our customers really want and value."
"The sale of Mazda shares by our partner, Ford, will not result in any change in Mazda's strategic direction and we will continue to accelerate our product-led brand improvement and cost innovation initiatives," said Mazda Chairman, President and CEO Hisakazu Imaki. "We will continue our strategic relationship through our ongoing joint ventures with Ford, as well as the sharing of platforms and powertrains."
