The unlikely alliance would in theory enjoy a relatively comfortable majority in the parliament's lower house but would rely on a handful of sympathetic but unaligned senators.
But there are indications that caretaker Conte will now struggle to stay in the top job. PD leader Nicola Zingaretti has made clear that he is not prepared to join a new government led by Conte, a former law professor turned premier who enjoys M5S support.
This may find support from the PD, which says it is seeking a change to Italy's economic policy that will help boost investment. Both sides say they are committed to reaching a deal quickly and will restart bilateral meetings again Friday, but M5S' Di Maio has insisted in an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that his party's plan to slash the number of Italy's parliamentary members would not wait.
These challenges may prove insurmountable, according to Lorenzo Codogno, a former senior official in the Italian Ministry of Economics, and now an independent consultant. "These two parties have very little in common, and trying to combine different priorities may well result in a patchwork." He said in a research note that he still expects talks will ultimately fail and a fresh election will be called.
Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Germany's Scholz sees no sign Italy will trigger euro crisisThere is no sign of a looming euro zone crisis due to political upheaval in Ital...
Read more »
Miley Cyrus gets new tattoo as a reminder of Italy trip with Kaitlynn CarterMiley got an ink of the family crest of the Visconti of Milan, an image of a giant serpent she'd seen on holiday
Read more »
European shares steady on upbeat PMI data, Italy jumpsEuropean shares traded close to flat on Thursday as upbeat surveys on Germany an...
Read more »
Now is not the time for an election in ItalyAn election would threaten Italy's ability to pass a budget by the end of the year
Read more »