Reuters report that Italy is preparing a new package of measures worth around 5 billion euros ($5.5 billion) to help businesses and families cope with costly energy bills which it plans to announce next week, two government sources told Reuters on Thursday.

- Not exactly deflationary is it....

Rome now wants to extend and review these measures in a decree expected to be approved by the cabinet on March 28, the sources said, asking not to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter.

As part of the package, the Treasury plans to extend until June an existing bonus aimed at cutting energy bills paid by low-income households.

Moreover, Rome intends to change a tax break to cut energy costs for firms, making it available only if the price of methane exceeds a certain threshold still to be defined.

Gas prices have fallen in recent months, with the Dutch TTF hub hovering around 41 euros per megawatt hour (MWh), sharply down from 73 euros in early 2023.

I'm sure the ECB are thrilled by this