BP shares surge on report that rival Shell could acquire it

BP shares jumped as much as 10% after the Wall Street Journal reported that rival Shell is in early talks to acquire the British oil company.

Shares of BP jumped $3.11, or 10%, to $32.94 in early afternoon trading. U.S.-listed shares of Shell, which is also U.K.-based, meanwhile, slid 3%. 

A potential deal, which is said to be in the early discussion stage, would put Shell in a position to rival competitors ExxonMobil and Chevron, according to the report, which cited people familiar with the discussions. If it were to occur, such a merger would mark the largest oil deal in decades.

BP declined to comment on the matter. Shell denied that it is holding discussions with BP.

“This is further market speculation. No talks are taking place. As we have said many times before, we are sharply focused on capturing the value in Shell through continuing to focus on performance, discipline and simplification,” a Shell spokesperson said in a statement to CBS News. 

Specifics and terms of what a potential deal would look like were not immediately available, according to the report. There’s also no guarantee that a deal will go through, and the discussions are progressing slowly, the Wall Street Journal reported.

BP is valued at roughly $80 billion, while Shell has a market value of more than $200 billion, according to financial data firm FactSet.