Monti calls for united response to eurozone crisis

The Italian PM has outlined plans to resolve Italy's financial crisis   Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti has called for a "united response" to the eurozone debt crisis, as he announced plans to get Italy out of recession. He added that despite the two recent successful Italian bond auctions, he didn't think that the phase of financial turbulence had finished.
On Thursday, the government raised around 7bn euros ($8.96bn, £5.86bn) of debt.
Interest rates on Italian 10-year bonds were 6.98%, a barely sustainable level.
Mr Monti, speaking at the prime minister's traditional end-of-year press conference, stressed that problems for Italy on the markets were linked to wider difficulties on the European level which required a "united, joint and convincing response" that could also boost growth.
He said his new government was working intensively on preparing a package of measures to get the Italian economy moving again. He will present details of his economic plan to EU leaders on 23 January.
The plan would focus on boosting competition and liberalising the Italian jobs market, Mr Monti said.
"The bond auction went okay, given what is going on in the eurozone, but almost 7% for 10-year paper is very high," said Manoj Ladwa, a trader with ETX Capital.
Italy is the eurozone's third largest economy, but investors worry about its mix of low growth, high debt and spiralling borrowing costs.
It is feared the country might need a bailout like fellow eurozone members Greece, Ireland and Portugal.
When Mr Monti replaced Silvio Berlusconi as prime minister last month, short-term fears of an economic collapse receded, but investors are now waiting for the details of Mr Monti's proposals to try to improve the Italian economy.