MINISTER CLAIMS ITALY READY FOR STRONG ECONOMIC REBOUND

The Italian economy is showing the "conditions" for "an extremely strong rebound" in the third quarter of the year after the COVID-19 recession, Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri said Friday.

He said that after the unprecedented contraction, the economy could end the year "not far from the original forecasts the government gave," the Italian news agency ANSA reported on Saturday, August 22, 2020.

Gualtieri added that the government would not implement "projects that make bad debt" and vowed to implement a “decisive” tax reform.

The government is lining up major infrastructure and green projects to take advantage of the biggest chunk of the EU's 750 billion euro recovery fund next year. Gualtieri made his bold declaration while speaking at the annual rally of the influential Catholic activist group Comunione e Liberazione in Rimini.