Rio Tinto shares jump on market talk on BHP bid

MELBOURNE: Shares in global miner and takeover target Rio Tinto jumped 7 percent in a weak market on Wednesday, on talk that BHP Billiton's $70 billion (42 billion pound) takeover bid for Rio Tinto would succeed, traders said. Dealers and fund managers said it was hard to pinpoint what exactly was moving the shares and noted that trading volumes were thin, although some pointed to unsubstantiated rumours that BHP Billiton might revise its all-share bid. BHP Billiton declined to comment. (Reporting by Sonali Paul, Editing by Mark Bendeich)