Trading Partner Portal: Italy
Overview
Trade Overview
Italy is in the southern part of Europe and is a high-income country with a corresponding nominal GDP of $2.38 trillion and a population of 59 million people. The country is economically split in half between the industrial north and the south, whose economy heavily relies of agriculture. Though Italy is the third largest economy in the Euro zone (excluding the UK), it has a high percentage of public debt, hindering market activity. Nonetheless, Italy has a proven reliable and well-founded trading partner of the United States. World Bank, CIA
Italian – U.S. Trade
Italy is the 16th largest export destination of the United States. The U.S. exported around $32.40 billion worth of goods to Italy in 2024. The key exports were chemicals ($11.59 billion), oil and gas ($5.03 billion), transportation equipment ($2.33 billion), non-electrical machinery ($1.88 billion), and computer and electronic products ($1.81 billion).
In 2024, the U.S. imported $76.34 billion worth of Italian products. The main imports were chemicals ($15.78 billion), non-electrical machinery ($12.07 billion), transportation equipment ($7.21 billion), processed foods ($5.14 billion), and miscellaneous manufactures ($4.22 billion).
Italy – California Trade
In particular in the United States, California has a strong exporting relationship with Italy. Out of all the states, California is one of the top 5 exporters of goods to Italy, totaling approximately $1.79 billion worth in 2024. Agricultural products made up $364 million of products exported to Italy. This was followed by computer and electronic products ($286 million), transportation equipment ($232 million), miscellaneous manufactured goods ($167 million), and chemicals ($159 million).
In 2024, California imported around $5.51 billion worth of Italian goods. The main imports included processed foods ($714 million), non-electrical machinery ($639 million), beverages and tobacco products ($581 million), transportation equipment ($462 million), and miscellaneous manufactures ($409 million). U.S. Department of Commerce
Foreign Direct Investment
The United States and Italy also have retained a symbiotic foreign direct investment (FDI) relationship. In 2023, the U.S. had approximately $29 billion in FDI to Italy and Italy had roughly $42.8 billion in FDI into the U.S. Italian FDI in the U.S. supported 98,800 jobs and contributed $314 million to research and development and another $2.5 billion to expanding U.S. exports. The top industry sectors for Italian FDI in the U.S. were: industrial equipment, renewable energy, food and beverages, electronic components, metals, and software & IT services. Select USA
In California in 2024, Italy was the twenty-first largest source of FDI through foreign owned enterprises (FOEs). Italian FOEs provided 4,614 jobs through 260 firms amounting to $471 million in wages. Top industry sectors were manufacturing, retail trade, wholesale trade, financial services and professional and business services (World Trade Center Los Angeles FDI Report).
Trade Agreements
Trade Agreements and Issues
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
Italy is one of the nations that are currently involved in negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) with the rest of the European Union and the United States. The United States and the European Union have a strong bilateral trade relationship totaling $698.7 billion in 2015. A free trade agreement, such as TTIP, desires to strengthen that relationship by eliminating tariffs, aligning compatible regulations to open trade, and furthering trade in the service sector.
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership
USTR Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership