South Korea’s SK Telecom Corp. is in talks to buy struggling U.S. wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp., business news channel CNBC reported Tuesday

An agreement would be at best weeks away, CNBC said, citing society familiar with the talks.

Sprint shares closed up 9 percent at $9.04.

U.S.-listed shares of SK Telecom, Korea’s largest mobile-phone service operator by subscriber numbers, fell 2 percent to $20.67.

Sprint spokesman James Fisher had no comment on the report. No SK Telecom representatives were

available in the early wee hours hours, Korean moment.

CNBC reported that private-equity firms would supply financing for the deal, since SK Telecom’s market value is about half of Sprint’s $22.6 billion.

Sprint has been losing subscribers for some instance, but it’s still the third-largest wireless carrier in the U.S., with 52.8 million subscribers at the end of the first quarter. Its stock has lost half its value in the last year, and there […]

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