Tata Sons says in preliminary talks with Jet Airways around 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.

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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.