GENEVA, March 10: New Zealand's Rank Group announced on Saturday that it was raising its offer for Swiss packaging firm SIG after taking over a 22.01 per cent stake to become the biggest shareholder.

Rank, which is engaged in a bidding war for control of SIG with Norwegian industrial and packaging group FERD, said in a statement that its new offer was 435 Swiss francs per share, against 370 Swiss francs when the bid was launched in December.

The investment group, controlled by New Zealand billionaire Graeme Hart, said it had acquired 1,430,580 SIG shares or 22.01 per cent of stock and voting rights.

"Rank is now the biggest shareholder in SIG, wants to maintain this strategic position and is offering to discuss... appropriate representation on the Board of Directors," the statement from its Swiss public relations firm said.

SIG's board had recommended on Feb 9 that shareholders reject Rank's 370 Swiss franc offer, saying the company was undervalued. SIG's share price on the Zurich stock exchange stood at 444.5 Swiss francs by close of trading on Friday after falling 3.5 per cent.

The Swiss company's board had stopped short making a recommendation on FERD and private equity firm CVC's rival 400 Swiss franc offer.

SIG made a 66 million euro annual net profit in 2006, an increase of 53 per cent over the previous year, on sales of 1.35 billion euros.

Rank Group controls Carter Holt Harvey Limited (CHH) a timber firm in Australia and New Zealand that supplies the packaging industry.—AFP