NEW YORK (AFP) -- Billionaire U.S. investor Kirk Kerkorian announced Tuesday that he had sold shares in Ford and was considering divesting his whole stake, deepening the gloom around the loss-making auto group.

In a sharp change of strategy, Kerkorian's holding group Tracinda said it had sold 7.3 million shares in Ford for an average price of 2.43 dollars per share -- representing a huge loss for the 91-year-old investor.
Tracinda said it also ""intends to further reduce its holdings of Ford common stock, including the possible sale of all of its remaining 133,500,000 shares"" which amount to a 6.09 percent stake.
""Investors are becoming more pessimistic about the Detroit Three's prospects in the environment of a deepening recession and restricted access to credit,"" wrote an analyst for Economy.com, Sean Maher, referring to the U.S. motor industry giants.
Ford shares closed down 6.87 percent to 2.17 dollars in a broadly negative market. They have shed about 65 percent of their value since the beginning of the year.
Tracinda said it had contacted an investment bank about further divestments of its Ford shares, adding that it would now focus on the gaming, hospitality and oil and gas industries where it sees ""unique value.""
""Questions regarding Tracinda's investment decisions should be directed to Tracinda,"" said Ford spokesman Mark Truby, commenting on the news.
""We remain confident in and focused on our plan to transform Ford into a lean global enterprise delivering profitable growth for all.""
Kerkorian built a position in Ford in the early part of the year, announcing in June that he would pay 8.50 dollars to buy an additional 20 million shares.
The investor, who made a fortune from running and selling Las Vegas casinos, bought the shares in Ford after referring at the time to ""meaningful traction in its turnaround efforts.""
He pointed to encouraging first-quarter results from Ford, which has been restructuring since 2006, showing a profit of 100 million dollars in a surprise turnaround after heavy losses.
At the time, Ford managers said they were on track to deliver profitability in 2009 -- an objective that has now been shelved. Since then, the Detroit giant has struggled to sell its heavy vehicles in its domestic market as consumers struggle with rocketing fuel prices and recent financial turmoil has also hit sales.