Pier Silvio

• Italy re-elects 87-year-old Giorgio Napolitano as president

  Italy's Parliament on Saturday re-elected Giorgio Napolitano to an unprecedented second term as president, after party leaders persuaded the 87-year-old to serve again in hopes of easing the hostility that has thwarted formation of a new government.

• Italy centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani to resign

  Voting for a new Italian president headed towards a fifth round Saturday, after the political deadlock claimed another victim, with centre-left leader Pier Luigi Bersani saying he will step down.

• Italian political crisis: The possible scenarios

  With no government in sight more than a month after elections which produced no clear winner, Italian political analysts have struggled to predict the possible outcome of the latest negotiations.

• Rise of Italy's Beppe Grillo may threaten Silvio Berlusconi's media empire

  An alliance between Beppe Grillo's anti-establishment 5-Star Movement and Italy's centre-left could pave the way for tough conflict of interest rules, forcing Silvio Berlusconi to choose between politics or his vast media empire.

• Italy parties seek way out of election stalemate

  Italy's stunned political parties searched for a way forward on Tuesday after an inconclusive election gave none of them a parliamentary majority and threatened prolonged instability and a renewal of the European financial crisis.

• Italy at impasse after vote, rattling markets

  Italy was at an impasse on Tuesday after an election seen as crucial for the eurozone failed to produce a clear winner and provided a shock debut for a populist anti-austerity party, rattling world markets.

• Split vote throws Italy into political gridlock

  Italy headed for gridlock and financial markets tumbled on Tuesday with a stalemate in parliament between right and left after critical elections in which the real winner might be a new protest party calling for a referendum on the euro.

• Gloomy Italians vote in election crucial for euro zone

  Italy voted on Sunday in one of the most unpredictable elections in years, with many voters expressing rage against a discredited elite and doubt that a government will emerge strong enough to combat a severe economic crisis.