Porsche has increased its stake in Volkswagen by a further 4.89% taking its total share to 35.14%, officially making VW a subsidiary of Porsche under German law.

By going above 35% of the voting rights, Porsche will acquire de facto control of the Wolfsburg-based group.

Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking, chief executive of Porsche, said: “Our goal continues to be to increase our stake in Volkswagen to more than 50%.”

This step also ensures that Porsche has a lasting majority at the VW annual general meeting. As a result of Porsche increasing its stake in VW, it is now forced to make a formal offer for Audi under German law.

Porsche will only be offering the minimum price for Audi required by law and VW has already said it will not be accepting the offer. Porsche said it does not intend to acquire Audi shares outside the mandatory offer.

Wiedeking said: “We regard Audi as an integral part of the Volkswagen group and have no interest in removing the company from the group structure.”

Porsche intends to keep increasing its stake in VW over the coming months.