Italy's bid to protect Parmalat from France's Lactalis picked up on Monday when a court ruled it could delay a shareholder meeting to prepare a defence and a state agency was cleared to buy a strategic stake. Parmalat (PLT.MI), Italy's biggest listed food group, said it won the backing of a court in its home city of Parma to delay its AGM until the end of June to allow domestic investors time to prepare a bid. Lactalis, the world's third-largest dairy company, has bought a 29 percent stake in its Italian rival, which has 4 billion euros ($5.76 billion) market capitalisation. The French group wanted the shareholder meeting to appoint its slate of directors to implement its business plan for Parmalat. The battle for control of one of Italy's best known companies has fed a diplomatic row between Paris and Rome and prompted the centre-right government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to explore a French-style fund to invest in strategic industries. On Monday, state holding company Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) held a shareholder meeting to clear it to invest in companies of national interest, a move prompted by Economy Minister Giulio Tremonti. CDP said the change to its status would only allow it to invest in companies with "a stable financial position and performance and adequate profit-generating prospects."
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