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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni believes that Italy's economy will grow faster than the European Union average this year, despite the EU's prediction of lower performance for the country. Meloni expressed optimism about a reduction in interest rates by the European Central Bank. Italy has avoided a downgrade of its debt to junk status and has not faced censure from the European Commission for loosening its fiscal stance. However, the Bank of Italy has lowered its growth forecast for Italy due to tighter monetary and credit conditions. Meloni defended a windfall tax on banks but faced setbacks in raising fresh taxes from the banking industry. She plans to sell assets worth €20 billion to reduce debt and may consider privatizing the national railways service. Meloni's premiership has been marked by controversies, including disagreements with coalition partners over a budget law and the EU bailout fund. Italy's priorities during its presidency of the Group of Seven nations will include artificial intelligence and Africa, in line with efforts to address illegal immigration. [Extracted from the article]

The chairmen of Italy’s two biggest banks played down risks that a landslide victory by a right-wing coalition will spark market turmoil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Golden Goose Group, a luxury sneaker brand, is planning to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in Milan, which is expected to be Italy's largest listing in over a year. The company aims to raise €100 million ($108 million) through the sale of new shares, while its owner, private equity firm Permira, plans to sell some of its existing stock. The IPO will likely value Golden Goose at around €3 billion, making it the largest IPO in Italy since May of the previous year. The company's decision to go public comes as the luxury business is experiencing a slowdown, with competitors such as Gucci and LVMH reporting declining sales. Golden Goose intends to use the IPO proceeds to pay off debt and expand into new markets, particularly targeting younger customers. The company also plans to personalize sneakers for customers as a strategy to boost sales. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's government predicts that its debt will stay below 140% of GDP this year, according to Finance Ministry Undersecretary Federico Freni. The government expects the country's growth to be around 1% in 2024, while the Bank of Italy maintains a more conservative forecast of 0.6% growth. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government is relying on consumer spending and EU stimulus to boost growth, but it may take until 2026 to bring the budget deficit below the EU's 3% limit. Freni also stated that the privatization of some listed companies, including Monte dei Paschi di Siena and Poste Italiane, will not be rushed. [Extracted from the article]

Singapore startup Silicon Box will invest €3.2 billion ($3.5 billion) in Italy to build a chip factory in the north of the country. The move is aimed at creating a more resilient supply chain for semiconductors in Europe. The chiplet production plant is expected to generate 1,600 jobs at full capacity. This announcement comes after the Italian government failed to convince US-based chip-maker Intel Corp to invest in Italy. Silicon Box recently closed a $200 million financing round, bringing its valuation to over $1 billion. Europe and the US are both looking to increase their national output of chips to reduce reliance on Asian facilities and avoid supply shortages. [Extracted from the article]

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares has attempted to ease tensions with the Italian government by pledging to increase production and expressing his love for Italy and its employees. Tavares also mentioned the possibility of building Leapmotor cars in Italy in the future. The dispute arose after Stellantis hinted at potential job cuts due to a lack of EV subsidies, prompting the Italian government to announce a subsidy package. Tavares assured that the Pomigliano plant is currently in full production and emphasized that Stellantis is investing in two new platforms in Italy. He also stressed the importance of collaboration rather than competition among European countries in the face of Chinese manufacturers. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, is seeking to attract a new major carmaker to the country in order to encourage Stellantis NV, the Dutch-based carmaker that owns brands such as Fiat, Maserati, and Alfa Romeo, to invest more in Italy. Industry Minister Alfredo Urso expressed support for the arrival of a second producer and stated that the government has been engaged in discussions with foreign partners for several months. This move comes as tensions rise between Rome and Stellantis over the company's plans to seek investment opportunities outside of Italy. Urso warned that if Stellantis continues to shift production investments away from Italy, the state could redirect a €6 billion automotive fund. [Extracted from the article]

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced a €5.5 billion investment plan to strengthen Italy's relations with Africa. The plan aims to enhance energy ties and address migration flows. Meloni hosted a meeting with African heads of state and government, emphasizing the need to tackle the root causes of migration and offer opportunities, work, training, and legal migration to African peoples. The investment plan will focus on areas such as energy, education, health, agriculture, and water. Italy also plans to involve international financial institutions and donor states in the project. The initiative has received support from European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and is complementary to the EU's infrastructure plan for Africa. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's government, led by Giorgia Meloni, has supported stricter regulations and fines on businesses associated with charities following an investigation into popular influencer Chiara Ferragni for alleged fraud. Ferragni, who has 29.3 million Instagram followers, is being investigated for promoting products, such as a pandoro Christmas cake, in connection with fundraising for charitable causes. The cabinet has approved a decree, known as the "Ferragni law," which requires companies to disclose on packaging how much of the sales will go to charity and when the payments will be made. Non-compliance with the new rules can result in fines of up to €50,000 ($54,527), with the money going towards charitable causes. Ferragni's endorsement of the pandoro cake, made by Balocco, is at the center of the judicial probe, along with sales of Easter eggs for Dolci Preziosi and a Trudi doll. Ferragni has welcomed the decree, emphasizing the importance of clear rules for charitable activities linked to business. Her lawyers maintain her innocence, and the investigation follows a previous fine of over €1 million imposed on Ferragni's companies for unfair commercial practices related to the sale of the pandoro cakes. Meloni has highlighted the need for transparency in regulating commercial activities with charitable purposes. [Extracted from the article]

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticized Stellantis NV for moving car production to lower-cost countries, arguing that if the company advertises its cars as Italian, they should be produced in Italy. Stellantis, which owns Italian brands like Fiat and Alfa Romeo, faced backlash after sending a letter to Italian suppliers about investment opportunities in Morocco for cheaper electric-vehicle production. Meloni's government wants Stellantis to produce 1 million vehicles in Italy annually, but Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares defended the company's cost-cutting measures and emphasized its commitment to Italy. The balance between Italy and France on the Stellantis board has been a point of contention, with France having representatives and a stake in the company while Italy does not. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's main business association, Confindustria, has warned of economic uncertainty in the country due to weak industrial activity and the risk to trade and exports. The association highlighted the reduction in shipping in the Suez Canal area as a result of maritime tensions in the Red Sea, which could further impact the economy. However, there are positive signs such as low inflation and the recovery of the services sector. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni believes there is potential for Italy's economy to outpace the European Union average, but the Bank of Italy has lowered its growth forecast for the country. Italy is also planning to sell a stake in Eni SpA to reduce its debt burden. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, is meeting the requirements necessary to receive aid from the European Union's recovery fund, according to the European Commission. The commission has already disbursed the fourth payment of €16.5 billion, bringing the total amount received to over half of the allotted €194 billion. These funds are crucial for Italy to strengthen its economy, reduce its deficit, and finance promises to voters. EU Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni has stated that investments linked to the fund will contribute to Italy's annual growth. Despite initial difficulties, Italy has presented a revised spending plan and is now fulfilling its goals. [Extracted from the article]

The Italian government is poised to become the majority shareholder of Acciaierie d'Italia, the country's largest steelmaker, as ArcelorMittal SA has declined to provide additional funding. The steelworks in Taranto have been struggling to achieve sustainable production levels due to high energy costs and weakened industrial demand. The government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, has proposed increasing its stake in the company from 38% to 66% by injecting €320 million ($351 million) through state-owned entity Invitalia Spa. This move reflects a trend of intervention by Meloni's right-wing government in various corporate matters. The main challenge for the steelworks is securing sufficient funds to maintain production, as it is currently operating at a record low level of less than 4 million tons per year, far below its maximum capacity of 10 million tons. [Extracted from the article]

The Italian government has defended the bonuses paid to the country's electricity grid operator, Terna SpA, despite the increased costs to consumers. The government argues that the bonuses were justified because Terna was able to cut costs in the "dispatch" market, which helps fill supply gaps and prevent blackouts. However, a Bloomberg News investigation found that these cost-cutting efforts resulted in a net higher expense of €692 million for consumers in 2022, while Terna still received €334.7 million in bonuses. The investigation is part of a larger global inquiry into how electricity consumers are being burdened with unexpected costs due to grid issues and market manipulation. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's parliament has rejected the ratification of a European Union bailout fund, causing tension within the EU and isolating Italy. Lawmakers from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy party and the League voted against the ratification, while the junior coalition partner, Forza Italia, abstained. The issue reflects a populist move, with critics arguing that using the fund would increase the risk of restructuring Italy's public debt. The parliamentary vote may open up discussions for new changes to the treaty governing the European Stability Mechanism. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's government, led by Giorgia Meloni, is expected to reject the ratification of a European Union bailout fund, causing tension within the EU and within Meloni's coalition. The far-right Brothers of Italy party and the anti-immigrant League support the rejection, while junior ally Forza Italia is abstaining. The bailout fund has been controversial in Italy, with concerns about its impact on the country's public debt. Despite Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti's efforts to address the issue, ratification seems unlikely. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government is opposing the ratification of reforms to the European Union bailout fund, causing tension with other EU partners. Meloni's right-wing coalition, including the Brothers of Italy party and the anti-immigrant League, supports this stance, while junior ally Forza Italia will abstain. The European Stability Mechanism (ESM) has been controversial in Italy due to concerns about increasing the risk of restructuring the country's large public debt. A vote on ratification has not been scheduled yet and may be delayed until January, with the possibility of a compromise being reached. [Extracted from the article]

Italy has formally informed China that it will be exiting the Belt and Road Initiative, dealing a blow to China's efforts to expand the investment program. Italy, the only Group of Seven country to join the pact, stated that it has not seen the desired effects and that it is no longer a priority. This decision comes as tensions between Washington and Beijing escalate, and as European Union leaders prepare to visit China with a message that time is running out for Beijing to address economic grievances. China's ambassador to Italy has warned of negative consequences if Italy withdraws from the program. [Extracted from the article]

Shares of Technogym SpA, a fitness equipment specialist based in Italy, rose after a Saudi fund purchased about 6% of the company. The deal, which gives NIF Holding approximately 4.5% of voting rights in Technogym, consists of around 8.8 million shares of common stock. NIF is a subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's NEOM Investment Fund Company, which is connected to the development of a futuristic city on the Red Sea coast. This investment reflects a trend of Italian companies seeking opportunities in Saudi Arabia. Technogym, a multinational fitness leader, has a market value of about €1.7 billion and aims for average revenue growth of 10% per year until 2025. [Extracted from the article]

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has stated that concerns about the efficiency and security of Italy's armed forces were the reasons behind the government's decision to veto the takeover of a local aerospace business by France's Safran SA. The Italian government used its "golden power" to oppose the sale, citing potential risks to the readiness of the armed forces and interruptions in the logistics chain. This is not the first time Italy has used its "golden power" rights, as they previously limited the influence of China's Sinochem over Formula One supplier Pirelli SpA. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, has stated that Italy's plan to hold migrants in Albania and process their asylum requests there has garnered interest from other European countries. The plan involves building two processing centers in Albania that could handle 3,000 border procedures. Meloni has suggested that this model could be replicated if successful and has also proposed creating similar centers in North Africa. The goal of this plan is to address the recent surge of arrivals to Italian shores. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed interest in examining the deal closely. [Extracted from the article]

The European Union has called on the Italian government to comply with a court order to open up the running of thousands of beaches to competition. The EU's top court ruled in April that licenses for beach operations in Italy, which are worth billions of euros, were being awarded without fair tendering processes. However, successive Italian governments have resisted this move due to pressure from current beach operators who argue that public tenders would harm their businesses and put jobs at risk. The Italian government has two months to respond to the EU's request. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni kicked off an attempt to rid Italy of revolving-door governments, but critics fear the constitutional change she wants could make things worse. Meloni's right-wing government met Friday to consider a draft law to change the constitution so that Italians would vote directly for their prime minister, and boosting the premier's power at the expense of the president's, according to a text seen by Bloomberg. [Extracted from the article]

In a message on social media platforms Friday that won her support across the political spectrum, Meloni said she had separated from Andrea Giambruno after an almost decade-long relationship. (Bloomberg) -- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has announced her breakup with a TV anchor, the father of her child, after he made a series of controversial remarks. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's 10-year yield premium over Germany - a measure of confidence in a country's debt sustainability - breached 200 basis points twice this month. (Bloomberg) -- Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti rebuffed the notion that a certain yield level on Italian bonds would compromise the government's finances. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni's cabinet approved the country's new budget law worth €24 billion ($25.3 billion), simplifying taxes and supporting low-income earners. Speaking in Rome alongside Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti, Meloni unveiled spending plans including tax cuts on wages and a reduction of tax brackets to three from four. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy plans to continue to pursue partial privatization of some of its state companies, thus rustling up cash to shore up its state finances, Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told lawmakers in Rome on Tuesday. "It's an obstacle course, but we intend to continue on this path": Giorgetti On lender Monte Paschi, the government plans to sell as planned and is "evaluating" options There are whole sectors connected to infrastructure "that have not yet been touched by privatizations" which could be considered in the future There are also "important" concessions that might be considered Read more: Italy Weighs Selling Some State-Held Stakes to Lift Finances ©2023 Bloomberg L.P. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is set to delay until early next year a summit with African leaders, aimed at strengthening cooperation on issues including energy and migration, because of the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Boosting cooperation with and investments in Africa has been a signature part of Meloni's foreign policy, as Italy relies heavily on the continent for its energy needs. Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said earlier this week that the conflict between Israel and Hamas complicates Italy's efforts to diversify energy supplies. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy's Parliament has approved Giorgia Meloni's plan to finance its upcoming budget law by widening the country's deficit. Both the Lower House and the Senate voted Wednesday to green light a budget update presented last month, which shows the government plans to bring its deficit below the limit set by the European Union only in 2026 - a year later than previously planned. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy's parliament has given the final green light to a decree softening a controversial windfall tax on banks that spooked investors. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's right-wing government won backing for a plan to tax the profits of banks, but which offers lenders the option to avoid payment if they set aside additional capital reserves. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy will manage to bring its budget deficit below the limit set by the European Union only in 2026, delaying an earlier objective and risking a confrontation with Brussels. The right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni postponed by a year pulling the deficit under the EU's ceiling of 3% of gross domestic product, according to a budget plan approved by the cabinet late Wednesday. [Extracted from the article]

The package is relatively limited since Meloni is trying to reduce fiscal spending on aid packages which ballooned during the pandemic and subsequent energy crisis. (Bloomberg) -- Italy is set to approve a package worth more than €500 million ($532 million) to help businesses and households cope with soaring gas bills, including a fuel payment for less well-off families, according to people familiar with the matter. [Extracted from the article]

"Monte Paschi can become the core from which to build a strong banking group", Giorgetti told reporters during a press conference in Rome on Wednesday. (Bloomberg) -- Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA could form the country's third-biggest bank through a merger with a peer, Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy will manage to bring its budget deficit below the limit set by the European Union only in 2026, delaying an earlier objective and risking a confrontation with Brussels. The right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni postponed by a year pulling the deficit under the EU's ceiling of 3% of gross domestic product, according to a budget plan approved by the cabinet late Wednesday. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italy is targeting a wider budget deficit than previously set this year and next, underscoring the challenge Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni faces in balancing tax-cut promises and souring economic growth. The 2023 deficit is seen at 5.3% of GDP, compared with an earlier 4.5%, according to an official citing a budget plan which the Rome cabinet was discussing late Wednesday. [Extracted from the article]

Still, Forza Italia, the party which was also founded by Berlusconi, has been the most critical voice in Meloni's coalition on her plan to tax banks profits. (Bloomberg) -- Marina Berlusconi, the eldest daughter of Silvio Berlusconi, slammed Giorgia Meloni's plan to tax banks profits as "demagoguery", the first public criticism of the usually private businesswoman against Italy's prime minister. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- The European Central Bank's latest interest-rate hike won't support the euro-area economy, one of the members of Italian premier Giorgia Meloni's cabinet told Ansa newswire. The Italian government has repeatedly attacked the ECB over its rate hikes. [Extracted from the article]

(Bloomberg) -- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that a windfall tax on banks' profits, which has worried investors, could be tweaked as long as the state receives the same expected inflow. "If we will need to amend the tax on banks, we will do it as long as the inflows will be unchanged", Meloni told RAI1 television, adding that the value of expected receipts is just under €3 billion ($3.2 billion). Italy's Meloni Says Final Tax on Banks Must Net €3 Billion. [Extracted from the article]

Italy's Meloni Says Any Version of Bank Tax Must Net €3 Billion (Bloomberg) -- Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said that a windfall tax on banks' profits, which has worried investors, could be tweaked as long as the state receives the same expected inflow. "If we will need to amend the tax on banks, we will do it as long as the inflows will be unchanged", Meloni told RAI1 television, adding that the value of expected receipts is just under €3 billion ($3.2 billion). [Extracted from the article]