Italy joins China’s Belt and Road project

Italy has become the first G7 nation to endorse the Belt and Road Initiative, China’s controversial series of global infrastructure investments.

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A fantastic deal for President Xi

Italy has become the first G7 nation to endorse the Belt and Road Initiative, China's controversial series of global infrastructure investments, says Miles Johnson in the Financial Times. The two countries signed a non-binding declaration that endorsed the deal as well as "a number of agreements between companies in sectors including energy and steel" worth more than "several billion euros".Italy's endorsement has "caused consternation" in Washington and Brussels, "which have voiced concern about China using the initiative to gain influence or control over strategically important assets".

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Dr Matthew Partridge
Shares editor, MoneyWeek

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.

He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.

Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.

As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.

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