HIROSHIMA, Japan -
While several media entities recently announced that Ford could be unraveling its ties with Mazda, this might not be the case. According to Mazda Motor Corp., this news is purely speculation.
Jeremy Barnes, a spokesperson for Mazda North American Operations, told Auto Remarketing on Tuesday that a report surfaced in the Japanese news Friday afternoon that Ford was going to be selling most of its ownership in Mazda and this story appeared to catch on like wildfire.
Sourcing the Nikkei business publication — which is out of Japan — Reuters reported that Ford selling most of its stake would mean the capital ties between the automakers would soften. It went on to say this could result in Ford and Mazda eventually severing their relationship.
In a statement, Mazda appeared to deny the reports. The automaker explained, “Today’s news report about a change in the capital tie-up between Ford and Mazda was the result of speculation by the journalist.
“Mazda and Ford continue to enjoy a close strategic partnership and there is no change to this relationship. As before, we continue to cooperate in areas of mutual benefit. We do not comment on speculation,” officials added.