BMW won't buy Aston Martin

BMW said yesterday it has no interest in acquiring Aston Martin from Ford. Although the German automaker never emerged as a potential buyer, there has been a great deal of speculation among enthusiasts that BMW would be a desirable candidate.

"We are a focused company and we want to stay a focused company. We're not interested," BMW CEO Norbert Reithofer said during a conference call with analysts.

Ford bought a controlling share of Aston in 1987, and fully acquired the company in 1994. Since then, it succeeded in revitalizing the company's product line, leading to the marquee's first profit in 40 years for 2005. In late August, Ford announced it intended to sell the company in order to raise capital.