Investors offered a mixed reaction to the merger speculation, bidding one stock up and dropping the other.

A spokesman for BankAmerica said the bank did not comment on merger speculation.

Chase declined to comment, citing its policy not to discuss merger speculation.

Lucent and Motorola have been at the center of most of the merger speculation recently.

Europe's automobile industry has gone into overdrive on merger speculation.

As a result, the merger speculation has made Peugeot investors happy.

Shares in bank, insurance and securities companies soared yesterday on merger speculation.

Analysts thought most investors merely wanted to take profits after merger speculation had lifted both stocks about 18 percent in the last two months.

The last few weeks have been heady ones for merger speculation involving banks.

The two companies have often been the subject of merger speculation.