There’s nothing like a little merger speculation to get a stock going again. On Monday, after a weekend full of reports that Havas has considered some form of tie-up with beleaguered WPP, the latter’s stock price shot up nearly 9% on the London Stock Exchange.  

But the enthusiasm investors had for the stock Monday seems to have deflated a bit today—shares were down nearly 3% in midday trading.   

But investors also seem to have bigger concerns, as the FTSE 100 index (WPP is a part of it) is down as well, based on worries about AI valuations, the US economy and other macroeconomic worries, according to reports.   

WPP shares are still way down from a year ago and year-to-date—over 60% in both cases. It’s going to take a lot more than some merger speculation to make up that kind of lost ground. The best remedy, we all know, is for WPP to start growing again. Time will tell if newly installed CEO Cindy Rose’s developing recovery plan can make that happen.