TNT Express has accepted a higher cash offer of 9.5 euro per share from U.S. rival United Parcel Service, which values the Dutch freight and delivery group at 5.2 billion euros ($6.9 billion).

TNT said on Monday the executive and supervisory boards of TNT Express unanimously intend to support and recommend UPS's offer, while its biggest shareholder PostNL also said it supports the deal.

In a joint statement on Monday, the firms said UPS's increased offer was a 53.7 percent premium to TNT Express' share price on February 16, 2012 of 6.18 euros, the day before TNT Express and UPS announced that they were in talks.

UPS, already the world's largest package delivery company, has long eyed TNT as a way to expand in Europe, especially Britain, France and Germany in addition to the Netherlands.

On Friday, UPS had said it was still in constructive talks with TNT, four weeks after the Dutch firm rejected UPS's original bid of 9 euros per share, or a 42 percent premium, valuing TNT at 4.9 billion.

($1 = 0.7592 euros)

(Reporting by Roberta B. Cowan. Editing by Jane Merriman)

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