By Mauro Orru 
 

Italy has established its own sovereign wealth fund with an initial budget of 1 billion euros ($1.07 billion), in a move aimed at securing supplies of critical raw materials to boost key domestic industries.

The Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy outlined the decision late Wednesday after the right-wing government of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni approved a bill promoting local industries, rolling out a number of regulations to protect domestically-made products from counterfeits.

The so-called Made in Italy bill is a key pillar of Meloni's strategy. After taking power from Mario Draghi, her administration moved to rename what was the Ministry of Economic Development to the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com; @MauroOrru94

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 01, 2023 05:40 ET (09:40 GMT)