The Securities Market Weekly, a financial magazine based in Beijing, reported last week that Geely has asked private equity firms in and outside China for capital to help it repay the money it borrowed last year to buy Volvo.

But the Chinese automaker received a cold shoulder as most of the firms deemed it too risky to lend to Geely, the magazine reported.

Last year, Geely bought Volvo from Ford Motor Co. for $1.8 billion and pledged to inject $900 million in working capital into Volvo.

Geely has never fully disclosed the sources of the capital it raised to finance the Volvo deal. But the magazine asserts that Geely mainly borrowed from state-owned Chinese banks, as well as two cities, Daqing and Chengdu, where it plans to locate two Volvo assembly plants.

The automaker also hired Goldman Sachs, a U.S. investment bank, to issue $250 million (1.6 billion yuan) in high-yield bonds. Geely even borrowed from other private Chinese businesses which normally demand exorbitant interest rates,reported the magazine.

Because of the Volvo acquisition, Geely's debt-asset ratio has risen to 73.4 percent. Meanwhile, it has come under tremendous pressure to roll over or pay off its maturing debt, the magazine reported.

In response to the report by The Securities Market Weekly, Geely issued a statement accusing the publication of fabricating facts and smearing the image of the company and its president, Li Shufu.

The Chinese automaker also threatened to sue the publication if the latter does not issue a retraction.