Conte said in a television address that the program represented “the most powerful intervention in the country’s history”.
The measure will add to the €340 billion in government-backed loans announced in March.
Conte said half of the new package will be earmarked for export-oriented companies whose turnover has been hit hard over the past month.
The government also announced that it will introduce measures to protect Italian companies weakened by the economic crisis from being taken over by foreign competitors.
Conte urged Italians to be patient in the face of a pandemic that has now officially claimed 16,523 lives and left millions at least temporarily unemployed.
“We will soon see a new spring for Italy but for the moment we must stay at home,” he told the nation.
