FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's Merck (>> Merck KGaA) on Thursday extended the offer period for its planned $2.6 billion takeover of Britain's AZ Electronic Materials (>> AZ Electronic Materials Group) to February 18.

Merck - the world's largest maker of liquid crystals used in TVs, tablet and smartphone screens - said AZ Electronic shareholders representing 56.48 percent of share capital had accepted the 403.5 pence per share cash offer as of February 5.

(Reporting by Maria Sheahan; Editing by Victoria Bryan)

Stocks treated in this article : Merck KGaA, AZ Electronic Materials Group