Italy set to unveil €40 bn of stimulus Published: 8:17 PM, May 20, 2021 29_02_2020_19_19_03_7965895 SHARE ROME: The Italian government is set to detail some €40 billion ($48.8 billion) of stimulus measures for the economy on Thursday, funding tax relief and grants to businesses forced to close by coronavirus lockdowns. The extra spending was already factored in to the government's public finance targets in April, and is set to drive the budget deficit to 11.8 per cent of national output this year, from 9.5 per cent reported in 2020. Rome's huge public debt, the second highest in the euro zone as a share of gross domestic product after that of Greece, is forecast by the Treasury to climb to 159.8 per cent of output this year, the highest level in Italy's post-war history.