Ford plans to sell Mazda shares: source

TOKYO (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N) is considering selling its stake in Japan's Mazda Motor Co (7261.T), a source familiar with the matter said on Saturday, as debt-laden U.S. automakers struggle with weakening auto sales and the global credit crunch.

Japanese broadcaster NHK said earlier that Ford, which has 33.4 percent of Mazda, was considering selling about 20 percent and had already approached Japanese companies for the sale, adding Mazda would likely buy some of the shares.

The source did not specify how many shares Ford wanted to sell. Mazda has a market capitalization of about 408.5 billion yen ($4.1 billion), which would value Ford's entire stake at around $1.36 billion.

In a statement, Mazda said no specific decision has been made. Ford also said it had nothing to announce and did not want to comment on speculation.

"Our relationship with Mazda has not changed," Ford said.

Slowing auto sales and the global financial crisis have sent shares of Ford plunging to a 26-year low and its U.S. rival General Motors CorpGM.N to a nearly 60-year low, with investors questioning their turnaround plans.

Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally on Friday ruled out a bankruptcy filing, saying the No. 2 U.S. automaker was focused on its turnaround and managing its cash "very, very carefully" as the market slowdown in the United States spreads to Europe and Asia.

NHK did not name the Japanese firms involved or specify what stage talks were in. Mazda is Japan's fifth-largest automaker by global output after Toyota (7203.T), Honda (7267.T), Nissan (7201.T) and Mitsubishi (7211.T).

The Nikkei business daily said Japanese trading company Sumitomo Corp (8053.T), which is Mazda's business partner, was considering acquiring part of the stake.

The paper also said India's Tata Motors might be a potential buyer (TAMO.BO), adding Ford was unlikely to sell the shares to Mazda's rival Japanese automakers.

The timing of the sale, coming during a global equity rout, underscores the problems facing Ford. Shares of Japanese automakers have been also hit this year by fears of sluggish global demand, slashing the value of its investment. Mazda shares have lost 38 percent in the past month.

Ford, which posted an $8.7 billion net loss in the second quarter, has stepped up plans to convert some truck production in North America to build more fuel efficient cars and bring over European-designed vehicles under a global production strategy.

The automaker's U.S. sales dropped 17 percent through the first nine months of the year, in a decline led by lower sales of large trucks like its market-leading F-Series pickups.

General Motors GM.N has been in preliminary talks about acquiring fellow U.S. automaker Chrysler LLC, but the talks were suspended due to the upheaval in financial markets, the Wall Street Journal reported late on Friday.

GM on Friday also ruled out seeking bankruptcy protection.

Ford shares fell 9 cents to $1.99 on Friday.

(Additional reporting by David Bailey in Detroit)

(Reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo, Taiga Uranaka; Editing by Kim Coghil)