With a deadline set by British regulators approaching fast, the market is abuzz with hopes of a fresh offer from Tata Steel for Anglo-Dutch steelmaker Corus this week, a media report said.The stock market is anticipating a new proposal from Tata Steel that would trump the 5.9 billion pound offer from Brazil's CSN, British newspaper 'The Observer' said.The report cited unnamed sources as saying a new bid was possible this week, although under a timetable set by the UK Takeover Panel, Tatas have until the end of January to decide."Some observers believe he (Ratan Tata) is preparing to increase his offer to 550 pence a share, well above the 515 pence bid from CSN chairman Benjamin Steinbruch," it said.Tata's advisers are working to finalise a fresh bid, but the decision will rest with Ratan Tata himself, it added.Corus shares have been trading much higher than CSN's offer - indicating that the market expects a fresh approach. The shares closed four pence higher at 540 pence on Friday.A deal with either Tata or CSN would create the world's fifth largest steel maker with a combined output of about 24 million tonnes a year.The Indian company had initially offered 455 pence a share for Corus and raised it to 500 pence, aggregating to about 5.7 billion pounds, but was later outbid by CSN with an offer of 515 pence per share (5.9 billion pounds).The paper cited sources close to Corus as saying they expected a further approach from Tata, but it was unclear whether it would come this week or next.The report also quoted unnamed analysts as saying that Tata has large expansion plans in India and Asia, and that it may have less reason to forge a tie-up with Corus than CSN, which is a regional player.
