'European champions' are indispensable says Mattarella

(ANSA) - ROME, SEP 27 - Italian President Sergio Mattarella on Friday told a joint press conference with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier after a meeting between the two heads of State that "it is indispensable for European champions to grow" in various sectors so they are able to compete at an international level.
    The Italian president was replying to a question on a European bank merger while talks are ongoing between Italy's second-largest lender and Germany's Commerzbank.
    UniCredit announced on Monday that it had increased its stake in the German lender to 21% and had submitted a request to boost the holding to up to 29.9% The president said he had previously spoken about the need for European champions to compete with "great subjects from other parts of the world.
    "The most advanced sector are key for the future: it is indispensable to create European champions, a path also suggested by the Draghi report", presented earlier this month by the former Italian premier and European central banker to boost competitiveness in the EU.
    "A union is indispensable to create European champions", concluded Mattarella explaining however that he would not be discussing specific dossiers, in response to a question on European mergers, (ANSA).