May 30 (Bloomberg) -- Billionaire Kirk Kerkorian will proceed with his plan to buy more Ford Motor Co. shares in a show of support for the money-losing automaker after the stock fell as much as 21 percent below his offer price.

Kerkorian's Tracinda Corp. is waiving a provision in his May 9 tender offer that allowed him to withdraw the plan if the shares fell more than 10 percent from the day before the filing, Tracinda said in a statement today. The $8.50 a-share-proposal is set to expire June 9.

The 90-year-old investor said he continues to back Ford Chief Executive Officer Alan Mulally's turnaround efforts, even after Ford abandoned its goal of a 2009 profit last week. Kerkorian said on May 23 that he added $100 million to a loan he's using to buy shares in the second-largest U.S. automaker.

``He appears to be in this for the long haul,'' said Bernie McGinn, president of McGinn Investment Management Inc. in Alexandria, Virginia, which owns 300,000 Ford shares and bought more last week. ``That's a huge vote of confidence and can't be viewed as bad news.''

Ford rose 6 cents to $6.77 at 10:29 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares slid 18 percent from May 8, the day before the tender offer, to yesterday.

``Tracinda continues to believe in Ford's management and turnaround efforts and remains committed to its offer,'' Tracinda said in the statement.

Truck Demand Slows

``We welcome confidence in Ford and the progress we are making on our transformation plan,'' Ford spokesman Mark Truby said.

The automaker, which has lost $15.3 billion since 2005, said May 22 that a slowing U.S. economy and rising fuel and materials prices are prompting new cuts in jobs and production. Ford said it may dismiss U.S. salaried workers to pare expenses.

U.S. automakers have slipped to a historically low share of their home market as declining demand for pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles pulls down sales and profit.

General Motors Corp. yesterday said an additional 19,000 union workers are accepting buyouts as the automaker closes plants and cuts production. GM CEO Rick Wagoner plans to outline a shift toward cars from trucks next week at the Detroit automaker's annual shareholder meeting, people familiar with his plans said this week.

Kerkorian has a history as an activist shareholder at Chrysler Corp. and GM. Tracinda made a hostile bid for Chrysler in 1995, and pressed for major changes at GM a decade later.

He sold his GM shares in 2006 after the automaker rejected his plan for an alliance with Renault SA and Nissan Motor Co. He also unsuccessfully bid against Cerberus Capital Management LP to buy Chrysler LLC last year.

Chairman William Clay Ford Jr. said at the company's May 8 shareholders meeting in Wilmington, Delaware, that the automaker welcomed the Tracinda investment. Ford's board on May 22 took a neutral stance on Tracinda's tender offer.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jeff Green in Southfield, Michigan at jgreen16@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 30, 2008 10:37 EDT