Astral Media shares halted pending announcement

(Reuters) - Shares of Astral Media Inc (ACMa.TO: Quote) (ACMb.TO: Quote) were halted by the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada on Friday, pending an announcement from the company.

The halt followed a newspaper report earlier in the day that Astral and its suitor BCE Inc (BCE.TO: Quote), are poised to announce a new takeover deal that seeks to overcome regulatory opposition with a plan to auction off a number of Astral's English broadcast assets.

Spokesmen for the two companies declined to comment. (Reporting by Euan Rocha; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)