In July 2003, the EU's top competition regulator, the European Commission, decided to raise no objections to the plan to increase La Poste's capital by 297.5 million euros (384.4 million dollars).

The European Court of Justice, acting on a complaint from German competitor Deutsche Post and its express transport subsidiary DHL, said that the commission should have opened a formal investigation into the injection.

This, the Luxembourg-based court said, would have allowed Deutsche Post and DHL to present their case.

The two firms "as direct competitors of La Poste, were unable to present their observations on the measure at issue unless the commission initiated the formal investigation," the court said, annulling the commission decision.

The commission has two months to appeal the ruling.

AFP/Expatica