Expro International, the British oil services company, is up again.
It led the mid-cap risers yesterday after a private equity consortium led by Candover said it had agreed to buy Expro for £1.6bn.
Reports this morning say that Halliburton, the US oil group, is considering a counterbid for Expro.
Halliburton, once headed by US vice president Dick Cheney, has been tipped as a possible buyer of Expro, as it seeks to expand its business outside the US.
By mid-morning Expro shares were up 3% at £14.91p.
Bid speculation has also bosted shares in Shire, the country's third biggest drug maker. There is persistent talk that AstraZeneca could launch a bid, with UBS analysts saying that Astra could afford to pay £14.25p a share.
The FTSE 100 has edged up 29.2 points at 6010.2. It's a relatively quiet day for corporate and economic news so traders will look to the US for direction.
Citigroup, America's largest US bank, will release an earnings update later today, following JP Morgan and Merrill Lynch.
