Ford Motor Co's Volvo Cars denied a Swedish newspaper report on Thursday claiming that the unit's chief executive would leave the company by the end of the year, dismissing the article as pure speculation.

Business daily Dagens Industri, citing unidentified sources, reported that Volvo Car Corporation Chief Executive Stefan Odell would be leaving to make room for a possible ownership change at the Sweden-based carmaker.

We see this as pure speculation, Volvo spokesman Bo Larsen said. We still trust our CEO Stephen Odell that he'll keep us informed as to what is going on.

He has promised to tell us first if anything happens.

U.S. carmaker Ford put its loss-making Volvo Cars unit up for sale in December last year as it looked to cut costs and raise cash in the face of plunging industry-wide auto sales.

Ford Motor Company