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Ford Motor Co. (F) Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally, clarifying remarks made Thursday, said Friday the auto maker will end the 2008 fourth-quarter with less than $15 billion in cash.

Mulally, in an interview with the Fox Business Network aired Thursday, said the auto maker had about $15 billion in cash on hand.

He later clarified the remark, saying he had misspoke since the U.S. auto maker has yet to finalize its accounts for the fourth quarter of 2008.

"Our cash position will be lower than $15 billion," Mulally said at the Consumer Electronic Show in Las Vegas late Thursday. "It would be premature to say anything more. We'll provide a full update when we report fourth quarter and full-year earnings in a few weeks."

Cash burn has been a key topic for the investment community since the auto makers need to control costs if they want to survive the sharp sales downturn expected to last through most of 2009.

Ford burned through $7.7 billion in cash in the third-quarter, but said it aimed to narrow that spending in the fourth quarter.

Ford is the only U.S. auto maker yet to tap the federal government for low-interest loans. General Motors Corp. (GM) and Chrysler LLC have both received funding in order to pay suppliers and keep their operations running.

-By Jeff Bennett, Dow Jones Newswires; 248-204-5532; jeff.bennett@dowjones.com

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