Economy – Industry
The development of economic relations between Italy and the United States has closely accompanied the process of consolidating political and social ties between the two countries. Especially after the Second World War, collaborations became more solid based on already strong mutual knowledge, partly linked to Italian emigration, partly to the custom of business relations and visits by the industrial leaders of the two countries. Mutual investments, as well as commercial exchanges, reflect the exceptional nature of the bilateral economic relationship, whose deep roots have been strengthened in recent decades through real strategic partnerships.
The United States and Italy - first and eighth economies in the world - today share a system of values on which a dense web of commercial and financial interactions is woven every day.
The stock of US foreign direct investment (FDI) in Italy amounts to nearly $ 35 billion, while the cumulative value of Italian investment in the United States is close to $ 33 billion, based on growing trends in both directions. The position of American FDI in Italy reflects the attention that US companies and authorities have always paid to our country. In 1966 the value of American investments in Italy amounted to less than one billion dollars: the evolution we are witnessing indicates a stable perception of the attractiveness of our country, from the manufacturing sector to information technology, from telecommunications to the financial sector.
Today there are about 2,500 Italian companies owned by US multinationals, which employ over 300,000 workers; there are almost 3,000 American companies participated by Italian companies, which employ 250,000 people in the United States.
Before the outbreak of the pandemic, trade in goods and services exceeded the record threshold of 100 billion dollars.
10 per cent of all Italian exports go to the United States, which represent by far our main extra-EU market; if we consider only exports to countries outside the European Union, the percentage weight of the United States rises to over 20 percent. Between 2016 and 2019, Italian exports of products to the United States increased by more than 26 percent, exceeding 57 billion dollars.
For all our main production sectors - mechanics, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, fashion, means of transport, agri-food, furniture, construction - the American market has been and still represents a reference point in terms of size, spending capacity and innovation, essential in any strategy of internationalization.
Italy is the second largest manufacturing power in Europe. There is a wide and growing interest among US operators in the quality, excellence and innovative potential of our productions.
The success of “Made in Italy” in America is accompanied with the constant growth of US exports to our country, as well as the opportunities for strategic coordination in the industrial sector, testifying to a constantly evolving and mutually advantageous economic relationship.
The most important events in the economic and industrial field during the year will aim at examining the post-pandemic market dynamics, at offering in-depth and updated analysis tools to businesses, at creating an all-encompassing picture of the footprint of our companies in the United States, to showcase the Italian excellence in highly symbolic sectors, and to celebrate the deep industrial and financial collaborations between the two countries.