US auto giant Ford Motor Co. has asked Denso Corp., a core autoparts manufacturer within Toyota Motor Corp., to buy part of its stake in Mazda Motor Corp., a report said Thursday.
Denso, which wants to expand the current business ties with Mazda to which it sells auto parts, is likely to consider purchasing some of the shares, the business daily Nikkei reported, without citing sources.
Mazda, Japan's fifth largest automaker, is believed to have already approached Denso about buying some of the Mazda stock that Ford holds, it said.
Reports last week said Ford, Mazda's biggest shareholder with a 33.4-percent equity, plans to sell most of its shares in Mazda to raise badly needed cash amid the current global financial crisis.
The stake in Mazda that Denso would acquire is likely to total less than one percent of Mazda's total outstanding stock, the Nikkei said.
Officials at Mazda and Denso were not immediately available for comment.
