China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group today acquired US auto giant Ford Motor's ailing Swedish car unit Volvo for nearly USD 1.8 billion,allowing the Chinese company a major foothold in Europe. The deal was inked by Geely Chairman Li Shufu and Ford's Chief Financial Officer Lewis Booth at the headquarters of Volvo Cars in Gothenburg,the second largest city of Sweden,the official Xinhua news agency reported. The Swedish car-maker,which has about 20,000 workers,was purchased by Ford in 1999 for USD 6.45 million. But Ford had been attempting to sell Volvo since late 2008,due to its poor market performance,the report said. Ford also wanted to focus its resources on managing its core Ford,Lincoln and Mercury brands. Geely was named as the preferred bidder for the Swedish subsidiary in October 2009. Geely,which started to manufacture cars in 1998,is a major private automaker headquartered in southeast China's Zhejiang province. Geely Holding Group is the parent company of Geely Automobile Holdings.
