China's Geely Automotive said on Wednesday its parent wants to bid for Ford's Volvo Car Corp, becoming the latest Chinese firm to chase a foreign carmaker during a global industry overhaul.

Geely's privately held parent, Geely Holding Group Co, would make any bid in conjunction with a government-backed investor, chief executive Gui Shengyue told Reuters by telephone.

I believe if Volvo is for sale and Ford has a global announcement, then our parent company will participate, he said. It is interested in Volvo's sedan business and not trucks.

He added that Geely's parent is waiting for Ford to decide whether to sell the Swedish car maker, but that the Hong Kong-listed Geely would not participate in any such bid.

Rather than just taking a stake in Volvo, Geely's parent would want to buy full ownership of the company, which will make a decision on whether to sell the Swedish car brand within a month, Gui said.

Geely shares rose as much as 3.9 percent on Thursday after it reported a 145 percent jump in first-half profit..

The second-half results are expected to be better than the first half based on the good sales figures in July and August, Gui said.

Major Chinese automakers, including Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp, have attempted several overseas acquisitions in recent years with mixed results.

Chery Automobile, Hunan Changfeng Motors Co and several other Chinese automakers have held initial talks with European or U.S. auto brands but refrained from making any commitments, industry executives had said.

China's largest automaker SAIC Motor group may take a passive stake in Saab Automobile by teaming with luxury sports car maker Koenigsegg, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters on Tuesday.

So far, Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machinery, a little-known Chinese heavy machinery maker, is the only one that has unveiled a tentative deal to take over GM's premier off-road brand Hummer.

(Reporting by Fang Yan and Jacqueline Wong; editing by Ken Wills)

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