P.M. BRIEFING : Bidders Battle for Britain’s Gateway

LONDON —  Rival British and U.S. bidders today raised the stakes in the takeover fight for Gateway Corp. PLC, Britain’s third-biggest supermarket chain.

British investor group Isosceles PLC lifted its hostile bid for Gateway by 31 cents to $3.60 a share, valuing the company at $3.2 billion.

But rival bidder Newgateway, which includes U.S. investment banker Wasserstein Perella & Co., struck back within hours, raising its own friendly offer to $3.67 a share from the $3.51 it offered earlier. The new offer is worth about $3.26 billion.

Isosceles, which includes former Gateway managers, also disclosed today that it has bought a key 15.1% stake in Gateway from another British food group, bringing its stake in the food retailer to 41.9%. Newgateway said Wednesday that it holds just 0.56%.