EU winter forecasts for Italy will show no major change - EU official

MILAN (Reuters) - The winter forecasts the European Commission will publish on Feb. 4 will not make any major change to the outlook for Italy, Marco Buti, Commission Director General for Economic and Fiscal Affairs said on Thursday. Last autumn Brussels forecast Italy would grow 0.9 percent and have a budget deficit of 2.6 percent of its gross domestic product in 2015 with public debt at 133 percent of GDP. It projected economic growth for this year of 1.5 percent and a deficit of 2.3 percent, with debt at 132 percent of GDP. (Reporting by Elvira Pollina; writing by Francesca Landini)