WARSAW -(Dow Jones)- German media group Axel Springer AG (XETRA:SPR) (SPR.XE) has offered to buy shares in a publisher of a daily newspaper Rzeczpospolita, Treasury Minister Aleksander Grad said Thursday.

Grad told a news briefing that the ministry would invite Axel Springer to negotiations when it launches the privatization process of state-owned PW Rzeczpospolita.

PW Rzeczpospolita owns 49% of publisher Rzeczpospolita, while the remaining stake is held by London-listed European newspaper Mecom Group PLC (LSE:MEC) (MEC.LN).

Axel Springer publishes Poland's top tabloid newspaper, Fakt. Its other newspaper, Dziennik, competes with Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland's largest opinion daily published by media group Agora SA (Warsaw:AGO) (AGO.WA).

-By Marek Strzelecki, Dow Jones Newswires; +4822 528-6771; marek.strzelecki@ dowjones.com

    (END) Dow Jones Newswires   06-26-08 1142   Copyright (c) 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.