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Good morning from the newsroom of the Financial Times. Today is Wednesday March 6th and this is your F.T. news briefing

Today Italy gets ready to sign onto China's contentious belt and road global investment drive,

J.P. Morgan Chase says it will no longer provide banking services to private prisons,

and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg decides not to run for president.

Then the F.T.'s Karen Stacy deciphers the move by Chinese tech company Huawei to sue the

U.S. government.

I'm Eric Krupky and here's the news you need to start your day.

Italy is getting ready to join China's contentious belt and road global investment drive.

The Undersecretary in the Economic Development Ministry

Michaeli Garacci told the FT that a plan to sign a memorandum of understanding

backing the program was on the table. According to Mr. Garacci, Rome intends to formally sign the

agreement by the end of March when Chinese President Xi Jin Ping is

scheduled to travel to Italy. The Belt and Road Initiative is China's plan to finance and build infrastructure in about 80 countries in Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.

But the U.S. and some big European countries are concerned that it favors Chinese companies,

that it creates debt traps for states that receive the investment, and that it's being

used to further Beijing's strategic military influence.

Italy's support for the BRI would be the first endorsement from a G7 country and

founding member of the EU, and it would undercut US pressure on China over trade. It could also undermine Brussels efforts to overcome

divisions in the block over the best approach to deal with Chinese investments.

This week National People's Congress spokesman Jean Yasui said 67 countries had signed up to the

...