Italy - Factors to watch on April 30

The following factors could affect Italian markets on Monday.

Reuters has not verified the newspaper reports, and cannot vouch for their accuracy. New items are marked with (*).

* EURO ZONE CRISIS

Italy and Germany are working to get their parliaments to approve the EU accords on the rescue fund and budget discipline on the same day, la Repubblica said on Monday in an unsourced report. The paper added the simultaneous approval would be marked by an event where Italian Premier Mario Monti and German Chancellor Angela Merkel would seek to promote a new image of Europe where growth and fiscal austerity walk hand-in-hand.

The IMF welcomed the idea of common euro zone bills - as opposed to longer-dated, jointly-issued eurobonds - and may try to persuade Germany to back the proposal drafted by a group of economists, la Repubblica wrote in an unsourced report.

A centralised debt management office would take care of the bills issuance for a maximum amount equal to 10 percent of each country's GDP. Countries would lose the faculty of issuing bills independently but would need to respect EU fiscal rules in order to access the jointly-guaranteed issues.

The European Central Bank has suggested Italy should merge some of its provinces, several newspapers reported.

* ECONOMIC DATA

National statistics office ISTAT will publish on Monday Italy's April inflation figures at 0900 GMT.

Analysts polled by Reuters expect consumer prices to show a 0.4 percent increase month-on-month and a 3.2 percent annual rise, down from 3.3 percent in March.

GENERALI

Europe's third largest insurer sees first quarter premiums growing 6.1 percent to 19.8 billion euros based on preliminary results, it said on Saturday at its annual shareholders' meeting.

FONDIARIA-SAI, UNIPOL

Italian insurer Unipol and its adviser Mediobanca will defend their plan to create Italy's second largest insurance group to antitrust regulators on Monday, the same day a rival bidder is expected to announce its next move.

An antitrust probe into the planned merger between loss-making Italian insurer Fondiaria-SAI and Unipol does not compromise its 1.1 billion euro cash call due in June, the bank heading the consortium for the operation said.

U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan said on Sunday it was not involved in a plan for a capital increase at Fondiaria-SAI, as Italian daily La Repubblica reported in its Saturday edition. It is a financial adviser to Unipol, it said in a statement. * Unipol said on Monday it expected a positive first-quarter, with "a significant improvement" compared to the same period of 2011. * Unipol will hold a shareholder meeting on Monday.

UNICREDIT

The German unit of Italy's larget bank by assets has seen a strong first quarter, its xhief financial officer told a German paper.

TELECOM ITALIA

The telephone company's unlisted main shareholder Telco will undertake a capital increase for an unspecified amount, said Assicurazioni Generali Chief Executive Giovanni Perissinotto on Saturday.

MEDIOBANCA

Pier Silvio Berlusconi, the eldest son of Italy's former prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, will replace his sister Marina as director at influential investment bank Mediobanca, a source close to the Berlusconi family's Fininvest holding company said on Friday.

TERNA

An investment bank has put forward a plan that envisages Italian power grid operator Terna buying a controlling stake in gas transport group Snam in a 3.5 billion-euro ($4.6 billion) deal without using public money.

IMPREGILO

Italian builder Salini criticised the financial report of rival Impregilo on Friday, as it seeks to convince fellow shareholders in the construction group to back its plan to create a national champion in the sector.

SMALL AND MID-CAPS

BRUNELLO CUCINELLI

Italian cashmere specialist Brunello Cucinelli made a sparkling market debut in Milan on Friday, buoyed by strong demand for European luxury goods stocks that have shrugged off double-dip recessions on the continent.

Mediobanca said it and joint bookrunner Bank of America Merrill Lynch had fully exercised an greenshoe option for 2.04 million shares in Cucinelli.

* RCS MEDIAGROUP

The sale of France's Flammarion, owned by the Italian publisher, will soon enter the second round with bids expected at around 300 million euros, French newspaper Les Echos reported on Monday without citing sources.

Generali CEO Perissinotto said on Saturday the insurer planned to exit the publisher's shareholder pact but would wait for an improvement in stock prices before cutting its stake in RCS.

UNLISTED COMPANIES

FERRERO

Italian confectionery group Ferrero has agreed to set aside $3 million to settle a class-action lawsuit championed by a Californian mother after she discovered the group's Nutella chocolate spread packed more calories than jam or syrup.