Berlusconi Vows Not to Resign

[alp227]

Source: The New York Times

ROME — As markets continued to hammer Italy, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi on Wednesday rebutted calls for his resignation, saying Italy’s economic fundamentals were strong and pledging that his government was “up to the task” of fostering economic growth.

“The country is economically and financially solid. In difficult moments, it knows how to stay together and confront difficulties,” Mr. Berlusconi said in his first public remarks in a tense month. “Today more than ever, we need to act all together.”

But neither the center-left opposition nor financial markets shared Mr. Berlusconi’s optimism or his confidence in his government’s ability to carry out long-promised reforms. On Wednesday rates on Italy’s benchmark 10-year bond remained over 6 percent, easing only slightly from Tuesday’s record highs.

Addressing Parliament for the first time since it passed a $70 billion austerity package in mid-July, Mr. Berlusconi called on Wednesday for measures that would balance Italy’s budget “by the end of the year,” not 2014 as originally planned.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/04/world/europe/04italy.html?pagewanted=all

[Blue_Tires]

1. It's like the scandals, corruption and drunken poolside orgies only make him STRONGER