UPDATE 1-Aeroflot to pull out of Alitalia bidding - I'fax

(Adds Aeroflot comment)

MOSCOW, June 23 (Reuters) - Russian airline Aeroflot (AFLT.MM) will announce within days that it is pulling out of the bidding for Italian airline Alitalia AZPIa.MI, Interfax news agency cited an unnamed board member as saying on Saturday.

"The decision in principle has already been taken. The chief executive of Aeroflot will inform Italy's Finance Ministry about the Russian carrier's withdrawal from the acquisition of the state-held shares in Alitalia," the source said.

An Aeroflot spokeswoman, however, told Italy's ANSA news agency that the Russian airline is going ahead with its offer for Alitalia and that its director general presented a report on the subject to the carrier's new board elected on Saturday.

It also quoted Russian Energy and Industry minister Victor Khristenko -- who was in Rome to mark a separate business deal between the two countries - saying he would be happy if Aeroflot entered the Italian market.

But when asked if Aeroflot would pull out of the auction, he said he was "only a minister, not someone who can predict the future".

Aeroflot has already denied one report by Interfax that it had pulled out of the bidding for the Italian government's 49.9 percent stake but its lukewarm enthusiasm has added to investors' fears that the sale could collapse.

Aeroflot, which is backed by Italian bank UniCredit (CRDI.MI), has expressed concern about the price tag and about Alitalia's finances, while a 30 percent shareholder in the Russian firm has said he is "negative" about the deal.

But on Thursday, the Italian government gave bidders more time to submit binding offers after one candidate said it was open to new partners and U.S. private equity fund MatlinPatterson re-entered the fray.

Aeroflot's spokeswoman was not available to comment on the Interfax report on Saturday.