Tata Sons says in preliminary talks with Jet Airways for a deal

Indian conglomerate Tata Sons Ltd said on Friday it is in preliminary talks with Jet Airways Ltd and has made no proposal to acquire a stake in the debt-laden carrier, cooling speculation that a deal was imminent.

Shares in Jet soared on Friday for a fourth straight day to hit a 5-month high after reports that an acquisition of the debt-laden airline by Tata was inching toward a close.

“We would like to clarify that any such discussions have been preliminary and no proposal has been made,” Tata said in its statement.

The topic of acquiring Jet was likely to be discussed at the Tata Sons board meeting earlier on Friday, one source familiar with the matter had told Reuters.