The European Union will allow Italy to increase its deficit if it helped the country’s economy,” Italy’s deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio said on Tuesday.

The comments by the leader of the 5-Star Movement (MS5) were quoted during an interview with Corriere della Sera daily.

Indeed, the European Commission appears to be toning down its confrontational rhetoric. A spokesperson for the European Commission said on Monday said Rome will update Brussels on the course of its budgetary policy, whi...