Fiat denies regulators probing liquidity

Italian automaker Fiat on Monday said reports that its books were under investigation were "false". "Fiat, just like all other publicly listed companies, receives routine information requests from (Italian regulator) Consob regarding various things, including liquidity, and Fiat responds regularly," said the company in a statement responding to reports in Italian dailies Il Messaggero and Il Mattino. "This has nothing to do with an investigation". Fiat, whose sales have been in decline amid a shrinking European automotive market and an ongoing recession in Italy, has been criticized lately for revising plans to invest around 20 billion euros in Italy over a five-year period.