Is Merrill Lynch a target of European giant UniCredit? Don’t bank on it. UniCredit has “categorically” denied a report in Italy’s leading business daily that it might be interested in buying the world’s biggest brokerage. The report said UniCredit CEO Alessandro Profumo could see this as the right time for a deal, given the weak dollar and falls in Merrill Lynch’s share price. Investors and analysts were skeptical, with one London analyst saying, “It does sound crazy.” Merrill on Thursday reported the biggest quarterly loss in its history and has launched a $6.6 billion offering of preferred shares to an international consortium that includes Japanese and Kuwaiti investors.

Private equity colossus Blackstone is getting into the food business. Performance Foods Group Co said it agreed to be acquired by Blackstone Group and Wellspring Capital Management for about $1.3 billion in cash. The agreement includes a $40 million stipulation — that’s the price Blackstone and Wellspring will have to pay if they fail to consummate the deal. Blackstone, which went public in June, has $98 billion of assets under management, according to its Web site.

Facing a “put up or shut up” deadline, mining titan BHP Billiton Ltd/Plc may be readying a sweetened offer for rival Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc. Speculation swirled on Friday that BHP will lift its offer to 3.58 of its shares, plus A$16.50 for Rio. The talk lit a fire under Rio’s shares, sending the stock up 4.6 percent in Australian trading. BHP has until Feb 6 to make a formal offer for Rio, or walk away under a deadline imposed by the UK Takeover Panel. Neither BHP nor Rio would comment.