In a formal response to the EU, Italian Economy Minister Giovanni Tria indicated the country will stick to its draft budget plan. That is, the deficit to GDP target for 2019 will be kept at 2.4%. Though, Tria expressed the eagerness to engage in conversation with EU. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte also emphasized that 2.4% is the cap that “for sure we won’t exceed”.
Tria said the budget was a “hard, but necessary decision in light of Italy’s delay in catching up to pre-crisis levels of GDP and the desperate economic conditions in which the most disadvantaged citizens find themselves in”. And, “the government trusts that what it has explained is sufficient to clear up the setup of its budget and that the (fiscal) law will not put at risk the financial stability of Italy or other EU state members.”
Also, he said “while recognizing the divergence of the respective evaluations, the Italian government will remain in a constructive and fair dialogue.” And, “the government is confident it can get investment and GDP growth moving again and that the recent rise in the government bond yields will be reabsorbed as the investors learn about all the details of the measures in the budget law.”
