British carmaker McLaren denies talks with Apple

British supercar maker McLaren said Wednesday it was not in talks with Apple about a possible acquisition by the US tech giant, denying a report in the Financial Times.

"We can confirm that McLaren is not in discussion with Apple in respect of any potential investment," a spokesman for the company said in a statement to AFP.

The newspaper had cited three unnamed sources saying the iPhone maker was looking at a potential takeover of or investment in McLaren, which could be valued at up to £1.5 billion (1.7 billion euros, $1.9 billion).

A spokesman for Apple said the company would not comment on "rumours or speculation".

A deal would have been seen as part of a bid by Apple to challenge Tesla, the US luxury electric carmaker founded by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk.Shares in Apple were down 0.77 percent since opening in New York, standing at $112.70.

"Owning McLaren would be Apple waving a big flag over its intention to enter the car industry," said Jasper Lawler, a market analyst with CMC Markets in London.