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After France tries to cut public holidays, Italy adds one

Just weeks after debt-laden France proposed axing two public holidays, Italy is proposing to add a new one in honour of Saint Francis and the pope who took his name.

Business • 18 Sep

Giorgio Armani's coffin, topped with white roses, lies in the Mortuary Chapel at Armani Teatro in Milan, Italy

Public viewing of Giorgio Armani's coffin in Milan begins

Members of the public began paying their respects to fashion legend Giorgio Armani as his coffin was put on display in Milan

World • 06 Sep

Berlusconi media firm takes control of ProSiebenSat.1

Italy's MediaForEurope (MFE) group, majority-owned by the Berlusconi family, said today it had secured a controlling stake in German broadcasting giant ProSiebenSat.1 through a takeover offer.

Business • 04 Sep

Inflation cools in France and Italy, steady in Spain

Inflation slowed in France and Italy and held steady in Spain in August, official data showed today, as the European Central Bank weighs its next move on interest rates next month.

Business • 29 Aug

A bank branch beside a statue in an Italian street

Mediobanca shareholders reject Banca Generali deal

Shareholders of Italian merchant bank Mediobanca have rejected the proposal of its chief executive Alberto Nagel to buy Banca Generali, a takeover that would have created Italy's second-largest wealth manager.

Business • 21 Aug

Mediobanca has received ECB approval to buy private bank Banca Generali

Mediobanca gets ECB approval for Banca Generali deal

Italy's merchant bank Mediobanca has received European Central Bank approval to buy private bank Banca Generali and create Italy's second-largest wealth manager, as it seeks to thwart a takeover bid from Monte dei Paschi di Siena.

Business • 19 Aug

An electrical pylon is seen on a headland surrounded by the sea

Sicily locals vow opposition to longest suspension bridge

Italy's decision to approve the construction between Sicily and the mainland of what would be the world's longest single-span bridge has set the stage for a legal battle that could further delay a project first conceived by the ancient Romans.

Europe • 08 Aug

The Port of Messina is a port serving Messina, Sicily, Italy

World's longest suspension bridge to link Sicily to Italy

Italy's government has approved a €13.5 billion project to build the world's longest suspension bridge connecting the island of Sicily to the mainland.

World • 06 Aug

Italy fines Armani for 'misleading ethical' statements

Italy's competition watchdog has fined luxury goods giant Giorgio Armani €3.5m for misleading consumers over dangerous conditions for workers making its bags and accessories.

Business • 01 Aug

Meta, X and LinkedIn appeal VAT claim by Italy

US tech giants Meta and LinkedIn have lodged an appeal against an unprecedented VAT claim by Italy that could influence tax policy across the 27-nation European Union, four sources with direct knowledge of the matter have said.

Business • 22 Jul

Loro Piana in court administration on labour exploitation

An Italian court has placed LVMH group's high-end Italian cashmere firm Loro Piana under judicial administration for a year after allegedly uncovering worker abuse inside its supply chain, in the latest in a string of cases that have tainted the image of Italy's luxury brands.

Business • 14 Jul

Man dies after being sucked into plane engine in Italy

A man has died after being sucked into the engine of a plane preparing to take off at Bergamo Airport in northern Italy, an airport spokesperson said.

World • 08 Jul

ROME, ITALY - JULY 4: Firefighters work at the site of the explosion at a petrol station in Via dei Gordiani, on July 4, 2025 in Rome, Italy. More than a dozen people have been injured, residents have been forced to flee and a summer camp was evacuated af

At least 45 injured in Rome petrol station explosion

At least 45 people have been injured in a huge explosion at a petrol station in Rome, according to Italian authorities.

Europe • 04 Jul

MILAN, ITALY - JUNE 30: Generali sign ontop of the Hadid Tower partially collapses on June 30, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Pier Marco Tacca/Getty Images)

'Generali' sign on insurer's offices collapses in Milan

One of the giant Generali signs that crown the Italian insurer's head offices in Milan collapsed today, remaining on top of the 170 metre-high (558 ft) skyscraper but at risk of crashing to the ground, firefighters said.

Business • 30 Jun

General view of Sfera con Sfera by Arnaldo Pomodoro in Trinity College Library in Dublin, Ireland, on November 2024 (Photo by Mairo Cinquetti/NurPhoto via Getty Images).

Renowned Italian sculptor Pomodoro dies aged 98

Italian sculptor Arnaldo Pomodoro, renowned for his huge bronze spheres, including one at TCD, has died a day before his 99th birthday.

World • 24 Jun

Activists unveiled a banner in St Mark's Square

Greenpeace joins protests over Bezos's Venice wedding

Greenpeace has added its voice to protests against this week's celebrity wedding in Venice between American tech billionaire Jeff Bezos and journalist Laura Sanchez.

Environment • 24 Jun

ROME, ITALY - JUNE 8: Young voters at a polling station with the 5 ballot papers each with a different color e,on June 8, 2025 in Rome, Italy. On June 8 and 9, Italy will vote in five abrogative referendums, four on the issue of work and one on citizenshi

Low voter turnout thwarts Italian referendum proposals

Low voter turnout has sank Italian opposition referendum proposals to ease citizenship laws and tighten job protection rules, with senior figures in the coalition of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni saying the outcome boosted the government.

Europe • 09 Jun

Stellantis was created in early 2021 through the merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot's owner PSA

Stellantis names Italian Antonio Filosa as its new CEO

Italian-Franco-US automaker Stellantis has today named Antonio Filosa, the Italian head of its North American operations, as its new chief executive, effective from June 23.

Business • 28 May

Piaggio sold 106,800 vehicles in the first three months of the year, compared to 120,300 in the first quarter of 2024

Vespa maker Piaggio's revenue falls to €370.7m

Italy's Piaggio posted first-quarter 2025 consolidated revenue of €370.7m, down from €428m the same time last year, the company said today.

Business • 09 May

The cardinals are sworn to secrecy, risking excommunication if they reveal what happens in the conclave

Cardinals enter seclusion ahead of conclave

Catholic Cardinals who will take part in the secret conclave to elect a new pope have begun checking into two Vatican guesthouses, where they will be barred from contact with the outside world as they decide who should succeed Pope Francis.

World • 06 May

Mediobanca is trying to thwart a takeover attempt by state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena

Mediobanca makes €6.3 billion Banca Generali bid

Italy's Mediobanca struck back today in its fight for independence by announcing a €6.3 billion offer for private bank Banca Generali to be financed by using its stake in insurer Generali.

Business • 28 Apr

Darragh and Bernadette Mac Ciaráin said it is important for people of faith to pay their respects to the late pontiff

'Humbled to be here' - crowds queue in Vatican City

An atmosphere of solemnity hung over St Peter's Square, as thousands of people waited patiently for the procession of the coffin carrying the remains of Pope Francis to the basilica.

Pope Francis • 23 Apr

The incident happened at Monte Faito, a peak around 45km southeast of Naples (Pic: National Alpine and Speleological Rescue Corps)

Four dead after Italian cable car crashes near Naples

Four people have died, one person is seriously injured and another is missing after a cable car crashed to the ground in southern Italy, mountain rescue services and firefighters said.

Europe • 17 Apr

Crowds gathered at the clear-sided casket of Carlo Acutis in Assisi, Italy

Italian teen to become first millennial saint this month

Carlo Acutis, a British-born Italian boy who built websites to spread his faith, will be proclaimed the Catholic Church's first saint of the millennial generation this month, elevating him to the same level as Mother Teresa and Francis of Assisi.

World • 15 Apr

The 145km line will connect the cities of Naples to Bari

Italy's new high-speed rail looks to lift south

Italy's high-speed railway is finally pressing into the heart of the underdeveloped south, using European Union funds in the hope that the new network will help reverse years of depopulation and lift the lacklustre economy.

World • 11 Apr