RSEND/ The Italian............>

ITALY AUCTION PREVIEW: RSEND/ The Italian Dipartimento Del Tesoro will sell

E6.25-7.75bln on Thursday. On offer are the 0.05% Apr-21 BPT for E2.0-2.5bln,

3.45% Mar-48 BTP for E1.0-1.5bln and a new 2.50% Nov-25 BTP for E3.25-3.75bln.

- BACKGROUND: Italy has met 69% of planned issuance for 2018, slightly below the

EGB total of 75%.

- RV/HISTORY: Signs that the Italian government will rein in its budget plans

have contributed to a compression in BTP spreads since the beginning of

September. However, lingering concerns over both the stability of the coalition

and the direction of economic policy have prevented a full normalisation of

credit risk. The 0.05% Apr-21 BPT trades at 1.246%, down from 1.948% on August

31 and 125.2bps outside of the comparable EUR swap. The 3.45% Mar-48 BTP, which

is the 30-year benchmark, trades at 3.564% and near the top of the 2018 range.

- TIMING: Results are due shortly after the auction closes at 0920GMT