Italy hits banks with windfall tax, sending shares sliding; China’s trade slumps – as it happened

Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news

• Full story: Italy approves 40% windfall tax on banks for 2023 as profits soar
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Shares in Italian banks are sliding, after the country's cabinet agreed to impose a 40% windfall profit tax for this year.

Intesa Sanpaolo's shares have tumbled almost 8%, while Unicredit are down over 6%.

One only has to look at the banks' first-half 2023 profits, also the result of the European Central Bank's rate hikes, to realise that we are not talking about a few millions, but we are talking one can assume of billions."

Just like oil and gas companies, banks are cashing in on the cost of living crisis, and should be subject to the same taxes on their unearned windfalls.

The former Bank of England deputy governor Sir Charlie Bean has supported the plan, suggesting that it could raise tens of billions of pounds. If the government increased the existing surcharge on bank profits from 3% to 35%, in line with the energy profits levy, this would raise 67bn over the next five years.