Italy’s president indicated on Friday that he was open to holding national elections on March 10 – a month earlier than foreseen – if parliament passes key legislation first. Markets have been awaiting a signal on when the elections might be because of their desire that the next government continue economic reforms to overcome the debt crisis started by Prime Minister Mario Monti’s year-old technocrat administration. The elections in the euro zone’s third-largest economy are due in spring after the end of parliament’s five-year term and the date of the vote had been widely expected to be in early April, with April 7 the most touted date until now. After meeting the speakers of parliament, President Giorgio Napolitano issued a statement saying he believed that elections for local governments in three Italian regions – Lazio, Molise and Lombardy – should be held on March 10.
