U.S. automaker giant Ford Motor Co. will sell its Automotive Protection Corp. subsidiary to a private-equity firm, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Ford, trying to shore up liquidity amid massive financial losses, was quoted as saying that it has reached a deal to sell APCO to an affiliate of Stone Point Capital LLC.

APCO, which offers vehicle-service contracts and after-market products to dealers, was acquired by Ford in 1999 for about 180 million dollars.

Ford announced plans to evaluate its strategic options for APCO on Oct. 11, but terms of the transaction were not disclosed, said the report.

Ford reported a record loss of 12.6 billion dollars last year as consumers shifted away from its profitable pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles. It has launched, and revised, a restructuring plan that is cutting tens of thousands of jobs and closing plants.

Besides APCO, Ford has put its Aston Martin luxury car division on the market. Ford also has been shedding noncore assets it acquired in the late 1990s and early 2000s, according to the report.

Source: Xinhua