SUNDAY'S stalemated Italian election saw no single party or wider bloc winning an overall majority in parliament. The headlines have been captured by the populist Five Star Movement, an anti-establishment group which didn't exist a decade ago, which exit polls indicate has emerged as the largest single party after capitalising on a rancorous campaign in which immigration and the country's economic woes have dominated.

However, Five Star is well short of a working majority in the legislature and has pledged previously not to enter into a coalition with other parties after the election. If that pledge holds true, Five Star may not be part of the next government despite its resounding success.

With talks on a new coalition soon to begin, in advance of the legislature reconvening on March 23, this raises the spectre of political paralysis in this key G7 nation which has the third largest eurozone economy. And this is causing wider concern in Brussels and across European capitals because Italy is perhaps the biggest threat to the eurozone's future.