How do you add $3 billion to your companies worth in these times of crisis? Easy, just get Microsoft’s CEO Steve Ballmer to make a hint that he’s going to buy your company.

Thats exactly what has just happened to Yahoo when Steve made a comment at Gartner ITXpo that a Microsoft acquisition of Yahoo would “make sense economically” to each other’s shareholders. After this comment the Yahoo stock soared to $13.73 which is over a 15% rise and has added over $3 billion in market cap.

Yahoo is going to wish they accepted the original offer of $33 a share though as Steve Ballamer said that Yahoo is no longer worth the original offer stating that the company “probably thinks its still worth as least as much today,” as when Microsoft made its offer.”