The European Union has proposed spending more on Italy and other member countries hit by the economic and migrant crises, but less on increasingly wealthy eastern states like Poland. The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, proposed the regional shift in the “cohesion” portion of the post-2020 multi-year budget as Italy faces political chaos.
Asian equities and the euro sank Wednesday as turmoil in Italy sparked a frantic dash for safety, while investors have also been spooked by fresh worries about the China-US trade row. Global markets have been sent into a tailspin as a political crisis unfolding in Rome has thrust the stability of the Euro zone and European Union back on to the agenda.
Senior Italian politicians on Tuesday called for EU budget commissioner Gunther Oettinger to resign over an absurd comment in which he voiced the hope that the country's poor economic situation will keep populist parties out of government.
Italy's president set the country on a path back to fresh elections on Monday, appointing a former International Monetary Fund official as interim prime minister with the task of planning for snap polls and to pass the next budget. The decision to appoint Carlo Cottarelli to form a stopgap administration sets the stage for elections that are likely to be fought over Italy's role in the European Union and the euro zone, a prospect that is rattling global financial markets.
The leader of Italy's biggest political party has called for the president to be impeached after he vetoed a choice for finance minister. Luigi Di Maio of the populist Five Star Party said President Sergio Mattarella had caused an institutional crisis.
Italy's president Sergio Mattarella accepted a political novice Giuseppe Conte, a populist coalition's candidate, as prime minister on Wednesday in a bid to forge a functioning government and end the nation's weeks-long political deadlock.
Law professor Giuseppe Conte has been named as the choice of the Five Star Movement and League to lead the Italian coalition government. The leaders of the two parties have been holding talks with President Sergio Mattarella over the approval of their coalition government.
Italy’s two anti-establishment parties promised on Friday to ramp up spending in a program for a new coalition government, putting them on a collision course with the European Union despite having dropped some of their most radical proposals.
An Italian tribunal has lifted a ban on veteran centre-right leader Silvio Berlusconi from holding public office, meaning he could run to be prime minister in the next national election.
Italian anti-establishment and far-right leaders met on Friday to hash out a deal over a joint government that could be announced as soon as Sunday. Matteo Salvini, leader of the nationalist League, told reporters after meeting head of Five Star Movement (M5S) Luigi Di Maio at the lower house Chamber of Deputies that their aim was to reach an agreement as soon as possible.