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ECOFIN: Italy Fin Min: Will Start Cutting Deficit In 2010

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- Italy is planning to start the consolidation of its public finances next year, and the adjustment will be limited to 0.5 percentage points of gross domestic product a year, Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti said Tuesday.

"Everyone's going to have to take the medicine, and we're being told that we must be the first to take it, but that the dosage can be minimal," Tremonti told a press conference after the monthly meeting of European Union finance ministers in Brussels.

The European Commission is asking EU member states to put their accounts in order, after efforts taken to smooth the economic slump boosted deficits.

Thirteen of the 16 euro-zone members are exceeding growth and stability pact criteria, which require that countries bring their budget deficit to below 3% of gross domestic product.

-By Gabriele Parussini, Dow Jones Newswires; +33 1 4017 1766; gabriele.parussini@dowjones.com

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