Italy will avoid increasing VAT - PM Conte

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Monday his government had freed up the 23 billion euros (USD 25 billion) in funds needed to avoid a scheduled increase in the sales tax next year. "We'll discuss the new budget forecasts today ... the first good piece of news is that we'll offset the VAT hike, we have the 23 billion euros," he said.

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Conte added he would like to increase workers' net pay and halve the VAT rate on energy bills to 5 percent as well as cut it to 1% on pasta, bread, and fruit for poorer households. A cabinet meeting scheduled for 1630 GMT will discuss the updated forecasts underpinning Italy's 2020 budget.