Russian oil and gas giant (13 EUR, -1,12%) held talks about launching a 5 bln usd-plus offer for Wall Street Journal publisher Dow Jones & Co to rival the bid from Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, according to a report. A regulatory filing with the US Securities & Exchange Commission revealed that Dow Jones had received several other solicited and unsolicited approaches besides News Corp's 60 usd per share offer, the Times reported. One of the approaches, on July 10, was from an "international oil and gas company", which an unidentified source later confirmed was state-owned , the British newspaper said. Dow Jones & Co and News Corp said on Aug 29 that they expect their 5 bln usd agreed deal to close in the fourth quarter, pending approval by Dow Jones shareholders and other customary approvals and conditions.
(Thomson Financial)