The following factors could affect Italian markets on Friday.
Reuters has not verified the newspaper reports, and cannot vouch for their accuracy. New items are marked with (*).
For a complete list of diary events in Italy please click on .
ECONOMY
ISTAT releases February flash CPI and HICP data (1000 GMT).
Reuters releases February asset allocation poll (1200 GMT).
DEBT
Italy sold debt at a record-low cost on Thursday and borrowing costs across the euro zone tumbled to new troughs as investors stocked up before the launch of the European Central Bank's sovereign bond-buying scheme.
COMPANIES
BANKS
Italy's government is under pressure from banks and their allies in parliament to water down a landmark reform of large cooperative banks, which the lenders fear will make them prey to foreign rivals and speculative investors.
TELECOM ITALIA
Italy's cabinet will examine a plan worth 5-6 billion euros ($5.6-6.7 billion) to speed up the roll-out of broadband networks across the country at a meeting on March 3, two sources close to the matter said on Thursday.
FIAT CHRYSLER AUTOMOBILES
Fiat Chrysler has agreed to give permanent contracts to hundreds of new hires at its Melfi plant in southern Italy currently on short-term agreements, a union said on Thursday, in an early boost for Prime Minister Matteo Renzi's labour reforms.
RAI WAY, EI TOWERS, MEDIASET
The board of state-controlled Italian transmission mast company Rai Way will not meet again before March 12 to , when directors will convene for an already scheduled meeting to approve 2014 results, chairman Camillo Rossotto said on Thursday. The board had met earlier on Thursday at an extraordinary meeting to discuss an offer from rival EI Towers.
GTECH
The company said on Thursday that the Nevada Gaming Commission unanimously approved GTECH's pending acquisition of International Game Technology (IGT), the final gaming authority OK required to complete the transaction.
GTECH said that upon completion of its acquisition of IGT, the combined entities will be branded as IGT and that the holding company, Georgia Worldwide Plc, has changed its name to International Game Technology Plc.
BANCA POPOLARE DELL'EMILIA ROMAGNA
The lender said on Thursday that the European Central Bank had set a transitional Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 9 percent as a specific capital requirement for the cooperative bank.
BANCA POPOLARE DI MILANO
The European Central Bank has set a transitional Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 9 percent as a specific capital requirement for the cooperative bank.
VENETO BANCA
The European Central Bank had set a transitional Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 10 percent as a specific capital requirement for the bank.
Standard & Poor's has put the long-term 'BB-' rating of Veneto Banca on credit watch negative, the ratings agency said in a statement on Thursday.
BANCA POPOLARE DI SONDRIO
The European Central Bank had set a transitional Common Equity Tier 1 ratio of 9 percent as a specific capital requirement for the cooperative bank.
ATLANTIA
Autostrade per l'Italia, the motorway operator unit of Atlantia, said on Thursday core profit rose 6.6 percent last year thanks to an increase in motorway traffic.
FINCANTIERI
Board meeting on preliminary FY results; followed by conference call (1700 GMT).
LUCISANO MEDIA GROUP
Board meeting on preliminary FY results.
PIAGGIO & C.
Board meeting on FY results.
Danieli & C.
Board meeting on Q1 results.
Juventus
Board meeting on Q1 results.
I GRANDI VIAGGI
Annual and extraordinary shareholders' meeting (0900 GMT).
CTI BIOPHARMA
Extraordinary shareholders' meeting.
PARMALAT
Extraordinary shareholders' meeting (1330 GMT).
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Stories on Italy...... <IT-LEN>
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