Italy reaffirms deficit goals despite weaker growth outlook
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ROME, April 9 Reuters The Italian government on Tuesday cut its growth forecast for this year and next, reflecting an uncertain international outlook, and said public debt was set to rise despite its efforts to curb the annual budget deficit.

In its Economic and Financial Document, the Treasury forecast gross domestic product in the euro zone39;s third largest economy to grow by 1 this year, down from a 1.2 goal in September.

The latest projection remains significantly above the consensus of most independent bodies, who project Italian growth of around 0.7.

The government set a GDP growth estimate of 1.2 next year, down from the previous 1.4.

Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti told reporters the revisions factored in a complicated international and geopolitical framework, referring to the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.

On the public finance front, the government confirmed its 2024 budget deficit projection at 4.3 of national output.

If achieved, that will mark a sharp reduction from the 7.2 ratio registered in 2023, when Rome far overshot its official target due to the impact of costly fiscal incentive schemes for home renovations.

Giorgetti said these incentives had cost the public purse some 219 billion euros 237.99 billion over the last four years. The most generous, the…