Thursday, February 25, 2010

Telecom Italia Delays Earnings Report Amid Probe

Telecom Italia says it has postponed the approval of its 2009 results and new business plan due to an investigation into alleged money-laundering activity at its Sparkle unit.

Shares in Telecom Italia SpA were down 3.2 percent to euro1.05 ($1.42) Thursday on the news.

The earnings were scheduled for release on Friday, following a board meeting Thursday. They will instead be released next month.

Telecom Italia's Sparkle unit and competitor Fastweb SpA are both targets of a money-laundering and tax evasion investigation headed by anti-Mafia prosecutors in Rome. Telecom Italia says authorities confiscated euro300,000 from Sparkle in connection with the probe.

Sparkle is a wholesale and retail telecommunications provider.

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