Alitalia is making heavy losses

Ordinary shares and convertible bonds in the carrier will not be traded until after a board meeting on that day.

Efforts to restructure Alitalia, which is losing $1m (�557,000) a day, have been met with resistance from staff.

On Wednesday, the unions put forward savings proposals worth 200m euros as alternatives to 5,600 job cuts from Alitalia's 21,000 strong workforce.

Social costs

Alitalia, which is 62% government owned, could collapse if the third day of talks fail to bring about an agreement.

"The risk of the company closing its doors is very real," said the leader of the pilots' union, Fabio Berti.

The Italian government would not be free to step in and rescue the airline, the European Commission has ruled.

However, short term assistance might be acceptable to prevent the airline from collapsing.

"A liquidation would entail excessive social costs as [European regional and local] elections approach," an airline source told the news agency AFP.

Disruption

Last week, Alitalia was forced to cancel hundreds of flights over three days.

This was a result of the disruption caused by unions which responded to the management's demands with strikes and airport blockades.

On Tuesday, Alitalia shares, which were suspended for an hour during the day, fell 12.5%.

The airline's cash reserves have shrunk to 200m euros from 515m euros late last year.