Alcan (AL) rejected Alcoa’s (AA) $27 billion talkeover bid as inadequate, even though it had taken Alcan’s shares up to over $81.

But, Alcan is sly. It appears that the company has begun talks with another metals giant, BHP Billiton (BHP). The Australian company has a market cap of $85 billion. compared with Alcoa’s at $34 billion.

Douglas A. McIntyre