Mps: 'Giorgetti, satisfied and proud to have restored it'

"As is well known, the government said from the outset that it would not participate in the meeting. It was one of the conditions agreed with the European Commission when the government exited control of the bank." Thus the Economy Ministry, Giancarlo Giorgetti, on the assembly of Banca Mps with the turnaround that brought Luigi Lovaglio to the helm of the Siena institution, speaking in Washington. "We are satisfied and proud to have returned the bank in the interest of all Italian taxpayers." Bankitalia governor Fabio Panetta, on the other hand, did not comment: "I do not speak about individual banks," he reiterated as he always does on various financial affairs.

''In the technical perspective it may make sense. Clearly, those who make policy are also called upon to make other types of assessment and I believe that poor finance ministers are not much envied at the moment,'' Giorgetti said of the IMF's warning that the fuel excise cut was 'imprudent'. "The meetings in recent days, including at European level, have confirmed the state of unease and the request to the EU Commission to take urgent, rapid and effective decisions to counter what we hope is a temporary situation," Giorgetti added.

"Let's say that these are much better evaluations than three years ago, when I first arrived, so this is a good sign. The path we have taken continues. What is certain is that situations that do not depend on us, of an exceptional nature, risk creating problems and setbacks not only for Italia and Europe, but I would say for the global economy,' Giorgetti added, commenting on the IMF's judgments on Italia's growth, 'unsatisfactory' and with more room for improvement, in the context, however, of continuing fiscal consolidation.