Oct. 9 (Bloomberg) -- National City Corp., Ohio's biggest bank, rose in New York trading after the Wall Street Journal reported the company is in discussions with a number of suitors about a possible sale.

National City advanced 14 cents, or 6.4 percent, to $2.37 at 11:26 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. Pittsburgh-based PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and Bank of Nova Scotia, based in Toronto, are among the potential buyers, the Journal said.

National City, which dropped 86 percent this year through yesterday, may be a takeover target as national banks seek to increase deposits and fill out their presence across the U.S., FIG Partners LLC analyst Chris Marinac said on Oct. 3. Regional banks surged last week on takeover speculation as Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo & Co. battled for control of Wachovia Corp., the troubled Charlotte, North Carolina-based lender.

Kristen Baird Adams, a spokeswoman for Cleveland-based National City, and PNC spokesman Fred Solomon declined to comment on the newspaper report. Bank of Nova Scotia spokesman Frank Switzer didn't immediately return a telephone call.

``We really aren't looking at bank acquisitions,'' PNC Chief Executive Officer James Rohr told investors at a Sept. 10 conference. ``We think you have to be very, very cautious today.''

Regional bank stocks have been crushed by unpaid mortgages and losses tied to stakes in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. National City traded yesterday at about 9 cents for every dollar of shareholders equity, according to Bloomberg data. The bank expanded into Florida in 2006 just before the housing market collapsed.

``We feel that we have sufficient capital and liquidity to manage through turbulent market conditions,'' Baird Adams said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Frye in New York at afrye@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 9, 2008 11:28 EDT