Ford to sell Volvo too?

Ford Motor Co. isn't about to sell its Volvo car subsidiary, a senior company official said Friday, brushing off a suggestion by Jerry York, a representative of the Dearborn automaker's newest major shareholder.

"Volvo is not for sale and we are about improving the business," Lewis Booth, chairman of Ford of Europe said at a press conference.

Ever since Ford sold the British brands of its Premier Automotive Group — Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin — to raise cash to finance its recovery program, questions have been raised about the outlook for its Volvo subsidiary.

York, who represents Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp., which recently made a cash tender offer for up to 20 million Ford shares, said that he would sell the Swedish carmaker.

"There's no rational reason for keeping Volvo or Mercury," York told Automotive News.