EU approves 172 million euros of state aid to Poste Italiane

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Monday it had approved compensation paid by Italy to Poste Italiane <PST.MI> for distributing newspapers and publications of book publishers and non-profit organisations at reduced rates.

Italy entrusted Poste Italiane, Italy's largest provider of postal services, with the obligation of providing this service and paid compensation of 171.7 million euros (£154.5 million) for the period 2017-2019.

The Commission said it had found that the level of compensation did not exceed the amount needed to cover the net cost borne by Poste Italiane for providing the service and so did not lead to overcompensation.

(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop)