German truckmaker MAN AG raised its voting stake in Swedish rival Scania to 15.57 percent, the companies said on Friday, rekindling prospects of a long-sought merger.

A MAN spokesman said the move reflected its strategic interest in closer cooperation with Scania, which last year rebuffed a takeover bid by the German industrial group that would have created the European truck market leader.

MAN had held a 14.8 percent voting stake in Scania, but the spokesman said it had arranged a share swap with another large investor that increases its number of Scania "A" shares, which carry more votes.

"They have bought 3.6 million 'A' shares and sold a corresponding number of 'B' shares," said Cecelia Edstrom, a Scania spokeswoman.

Scania "B" shares rose as much as 4.6 percent to 158 crowns and were still up 3 percent at 155.50 by 1153 GMT. Its "A" stock was up 4 percent, while MAN shares edged up 0.2 percent to 110.43 euros.

The two companies had agreed a cooling-off period after MAN's hostile approach triggered nasty exchanges and exposed bad blood between top managers even though MAN CEO Hakan Samuelsson is a Swede.

The companies are examining a merger that would also include Volkswagen's trucks business. VW is the biggest investor in both Scania and MAN.

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