Nissan Motor Co. President Carlos Ghosn denied speculation Friday that he intends to become General Motors Corp.'s chief executive officer but did not rule out the possibility of joining its board of directors if and when Nissan, GM and Renault agree to form an alliance.

"I am not a candidate to become anything else than the CEO of Nissan and CEO of Renault," Ghosn said at a news conference at Nissan headquarters in Tokyo.

There is speculation, especially within GM, that Ghosn's ultimate goal is to take over the ailing automaker, a company that once symbolized U.S. industrial might.