Guinness abandoned its takeover bid for Distillers.

The action may give a boost to a rival offer for Distillers, Britain’s largest whiskey company, by the Argyll supermarket group, but there was also speculation that dropping the bid could be a way for Guinness and Distillers to find a new formula to merge. Financial analysts said Distillers might be preparing to mount a takeover bid for Guinness, in which case it would dispose of some of its whiskey brands to avoid objections by Britain’s monopolies commission. Distillers, whose brands include Johnny Walker and Gordon’s, had already accepted the $3.29-billion Guinness bid.