Reliance Communications staged a sharp recovery on India’s stock markets on Friday as investors readied for a possible announcement over the weekend or early next week on the future of the group’s planned tie-up with MTN.

India’s second-largest mobile operator, whose shares jumped 12.5 per cent on Friday to Rs438.20, is looking to extend a 45-day period of exclusive talks on the tie-up with its South African rival beyond a deadline set to expire this Tuesday.