Dow Jones accidentally announces that Google has bought Apple during test

The story quoted Google employees saying "Yay" and claimed the move was part of Steve Jobs' will

Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks about the new Apple headquarters during a media event in Cupertino, California on September 12, 2017 (JOSH EDELSON/AFP/Getty Images)

Google is buying Apple for $9 billion, according to Dow Jones. But it's wrong.

The respected newswire accidentally posted a message that the two tech giants were merging, because the deal had been stipulated in Steve Jobs' will. But it was a mistaken post that made its way onto the website for two minutes, apparently as part of a test of its systems.

The article on Dow Jones' website said the deal was "a surprise move to everyone who is alive", and that Google employees had said "Yay" in response. It said that Google employees would be moving into "Apple's fancy headquarters".

Apple's shares rose a little in response to the story, though have settled back down again now it has emerged the story is entirely fake.

It's not clear whether a Dow Jones employee had written the story, but it was presumably never intended to make its way to the public. A statement from the company said that it was published as a result of a "technical error".

"All of those headlines are being removed from the wires," the statement read. "We apologize for the error."