MILAN (Reuters) – Italy’s government has no need to directly invest in Stellantis as the carmaker is doing well, Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti suggested on Monday, echoing similar comments made last week by the group’s chairman.
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Asked by reporters whether Rome should take a stake in Stellantis to have more say in its management, Giorgetti said the company’s CEO Carlos Tavares had demonstrated he can pursue the highest financial results for the group.
“Based on my economic culture, I think that states must enter (companies) only when the market fails and to preserve strategic interests,” Giorgetti said during a conference in Milan.
Last week Italy’s automotive lobby said a public investment in Stellantis could be a counterweight to the shareholding of the French state.
However, Stellantis chairman John Elkann rejected the idea, saying thriving companies have no need of state intervention.
“I don’t know if France has more say than Italy in Stellantis,” Giorgetti said on Monday.
(Reporting by Giulio Piovaccari, writing by Federica Urso, editing by Federico Maccioni and Gavin Jones)