Economics
Italy Tries to Reassure EU on Deficit Without Giving 2020 Target
- Commission scheduled to meet today to decide on debt action
- Rome committed this week to lower spending, deficit cut
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In a last ditch effort to avoid European Union sanctions, Italy’s Finance Minister Giovanni Tria and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte sought to reassure Brussels that the government’s commitment to fiscal discipline will extend beyond this year into 2020.
The European Commission meets Wednesday to decide on disciplinary action against Italy over its debt. The letter sent by Tria and Conte on Tuesday evening says that favorable 2019 budgetary trends -- higher revenue and lower-than-expected welfare costs -- will continue next year.