The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1000 GMT on Thursday:

** Shares of Arconic Inc closed up 9.7 percent after Bloomberg reported that Apollo Global Management LLC is in talks to buy the U.S. aluminum products maker for about $22 a share, citing people familiar with the matter.

** Chinese construction company Jangho Group Co Ltd has proposed to acquire medical centre operator Healius Ltd for A$1.7 billion ($1.2 billion), marking what would be one of the mainland’s biggest healthcare plays in Australia.

** The founder of South Korean gaming company Nexon is set to sell a controlling stake worth around $9 billion in Nexon’s holding firm NXC Corp, the Korea Economic Daily newspaper reported.

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** Swiss bank UBS is not looking to merge with any other bank, Chairman Axel Weber told the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper, dismissing speculation that UBS could join forces with Deutsche Bank.

** Talks between ailing German public sector bank NordLB and fellow public-sector lender Helaba about a possible merger have ended, Germany daily Boersen-Zeitung reported, citing no sources.

** Norwegian oil firm DNO has raised its stake in Britain’s Faroe Petroleum to about 43 percent, it said, falling short of the 57.5 percent needed to give it an unasailable majority shareholding.

** Israeli engineering firm Baran Group said a foreign engineering group has expressed interest in buying 50.01 percent of the company, sending its shares surging. (Compiled by Debroop Roy in Bengaluru)