Mazda reportedly to pull out of Michigan joint venture with Ford

Mazda is reportedly pulling out of a joint manufacturing venture with Ford Motor Co. that was thought to be unprofitable for the Japanese carmaker.

The site, AutoAlliance International, is about 25 miles south of Detroit and makes the Mazda 6 and the Ford Mustang.

Bloomberg News, citing a report from Japanese broadcaster NHK, said Mazda will transfer production of the 6 to the Yamaguchi Prefecture in Japan as soon as 2013.

Mazda and Ford said the NHK reports are speculative and are not based on information released from either company. Both declined to comment further to Bloomberg.

By Michelle Koueiter