July 6 (Bloomberg) -- Dow Jones & Co. and the publisher's controlling Bancroft family said they haven't completed negotiations with Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. after the Business newspaper in London reported the Bancrofts will agree to a sale.

``There is no change in the status of the discussions currently under way,'' Bancroft spokesman Roy Winnick said in an e-mail today. ``News Corp. is continuing to conduct due diligence, and the negotiations are not complete.''

The Business, citing unidentified people acting for the Dow Jones board, reported negotiations over Murdoch's $5 billion bid have been completed and the board expects the Bancroft family to accept the terms over the next few days. A formal announcement is expected next week, the newspaper said on its Web site. Dow Jones spokeswoman Andrea Grinbaum said the story isn't true.

The report pushed up shares of New York-based Dow Jones. They gained $1.22, or 2.1 percent, to $59.07 at 4:18 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The stock has climbed 63 percent since April 30, the day before Murdoch's $60 a share offer was made public.

``The Dow Jones board is under pressure to see some kind of decisive outcome within the next week to 10 days,'' said Peter Kreisky, president of Kreisky Media Consultancy in Boston, in an interview. ``What they'd be concerned about is if Murdoch is to withdraw the offer because of unjustifiable delays in the decision process.''

Editorial Oversight

Dow Jones reached an agreement with News Corp. last week on the structure of a committee that would approve the hiring and firing of top Dow Jones editors in the event of a takeover, according to people briefed on the plan at that time. The Bancroft family had resisted a sale out of concern Murdoch, 76, would try to influence editorial content at the Journal.

The Journal, the second-largest U.S. newspaper in circulation, would give Murdoch instant clout in U.S. financial news. He also would get material from the weekly Barron's magazine and Dow Jones Newswires to fill his 110 newspapers and the Fox Business Channel he plans to start later this year.

News Corp. is ``unaware of the truth or otherwise'' of the Business's report, said Howard Rubenstein, an outside spokesman for News Corp., in an e-mailed statement.

Class A shares of New York-based News Corp. fell 7 cents to $21.57 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading.

To contact the reporter on this story: Leon Lazaroff in New York at llazaroff@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: July 6, 2007 16:25 EDT