Dec 29 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Financial Times. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

Headlines

- Romania and Bulgaria expect to join EU border-free area in March

- Donald Tusk puts Polish state media into insolvency

- UK investors shy away from London-listed equities

- Israel's Benny Gantz threatens to intensify military action against Hizbollah

Overview

- Romania and Bulgaria expect to join the EU's border-free Schengen area in March as crunch talks with Austria draw to a close, the Romanian government has said.

- Poland's government has put the country's state media group into insolvency, the latest move in a drive by Prime Minister Donald Tusk to overhaul its operations in the face of opposition from the rightwing former government.

- Private UK investors look set to have withdrawn the highest amount in more than two decades from London-listed equities by the end of 2023 as the cost of living crisis bites, further compounding a flight from the local market.

- Israeli minister Benny Gantz has threatened to ramp up military action in the north to push Hizbollah forces, which are firing at Israel from Lebanon, further away from its border.

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)