Waterford Wedgwood has ruled out the possibility of ending up with a 100 per cent stake in German porcelain manufacturer, Rosenthal, following the bid for the outstanding shares it does not already own. Mr Richard Barnes, Waterford Wedgwood's group finance director, speaking at a press conference in Munich, said he was confident of ending up with a 75 per cent holding. However, he noted that there is unlikely to be a response from 10 per cent of the shareholders. Further, 6 per cent is held by the Rosenthal employees and he hoped they would hold onto their shares.

Waterford Wedgwood owns 32 per cent of Rosenthal and has options over 13.5 per cent. Mr Barnes said the group will definitely end up with more than 50 per cent. At that stage the holding can be consolidated into Waterford Wedgwood's group accounts. The tender offer which is being recommended by the Rosenthal management board is unconditional.

Waterford Wedgwood announced the tender offer last week, which is being recommended by the Rosenthal board and is unconditional. The consideration amounts to 200 deutschmarks cash per share, or 36 per cent above the average price on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange during the six months prior to the offer. The official offer document, circulated to the Rosenthal shareholders yesterday, noted that a "fair valuation" of DM170 has been placed on the shares by SudTreu, Suddeusch Treuhand Aktiengesellschaft. Rosenthal said the company should record a profit of between DM2 million (£770,000) and DM3 million (£1.15 million) in 1998, after a loss of nearly DM49 million in 1996.

The company confirmed that it will nearly break even on an operating basis in 1997, as sales rose about 2 per cent.

Based on the offer of DM200 a share, the remaining 54 per cent of Rosenthal would cost Waterford Wedgwood around DM105.8 million (£40.7 million), said Mr Barnes.

If the takeover succeeds, the resulting company, with DM1.4 billion (£538 million) in sales, would be the world's largest maker of porcelain and ceramic items, he added.