Waterford Wedgwood is to make a 105.8 million deutschmark (£40.5 million) bid to acquire the outstanding shares in Rosenthal, the publicly-quoted German manufacturer of porcelain brands.

Waterford Wedgwood said it had bought shares in the market yesterday, building its stake from the previous 31.4 per cent to 32.2 per cent, through the purchase of 7,700 shares, the vast bulk of which were purchased at DM199 a share. The total cost was in the region of £580,000.