Italy seeks further austerity measures

Italy may have to take further austerity measures on top of massive spending cuts currently making their way through parliament, Finance Minister Giulio Tremonti said on Saturday. "We have to do the inventory of the things we have done and check our progress and if needed we''ll have to take further steps," Tremonti told reporters on the sidelines of the G-7 meeting in Marseille, France. The Italian government has earlier announced a austerity packages to slash spending by more than $70 billion over three years, expected to go to parliament''s lower house next week.