Last year's budget deficit is lower than the 3.4 percent recorded in 2024, but remains above the EU's budgetary ceiling of 3.0 percent.
The setback hits Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's government, which is already licking its wounds after a major legal change was halted in a referendum.
In addition, Meloni's ambitious defense investments are being hampered by these problems, while the economy is under pressure from higher energy prices and uncertain prospects as a result of the conflict involving Iran.
The war prompted the central bank on Friday to downgrade its GDP forecasts to 0.5 percent for this year and next year. Previously, they were 0.6 and 0.8 percent, respectively.
