P.M. BRIEFING : Ford Motor European Arm to Buy 15% Friendly Share of Jaguar PLC

Ford Motor Co.’s European arm said today it intends to buy a friendly stake of up to 15% in the British luxury car maker Jaguar PLC.

A Ford stake in Jaguar would give the British company access to advanced design and manufacturing technology and worldwide marketing services, while giving Ford an association with Jaguar’s prestigious line of luxury cars.

The purchase marks the second recent major foreign move by Ford, the second biggest U.S. auto maker after General Motors Corp. Ford confirmed earlier this month that it was negotiating with Saab-Scania AB, the Swedish airplane, truck and auto maker, over a possible transaction.

Ford of Europe has begun buying Jaguar shares on the open market, said Ford spokesman Michael Perry, who declined to elaborate on Ford’s share purchases.

Jaguar, whose earnings have suffered over the last year because of flagging demand in the United States, its principal market, widely had been expected to link up with a larger auto maker.

Under Jaguar’s articles of association, individual holdings are limited to 15% until the end of 1990. The restriction was a condition of the formerly state-owned company’s privatization in 1984.