Trading Partner Portal: Italy
Overview
Trade Overview
Italy is in the southern part of Europe and is a high income country with a corresponding gross domestic product (GDP) of $1.89 trillion and a population of 59.449 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
Italy is the 18th largest export destination of the United States. The US exported around $19.9 billion worth of goods to Italy in 2021. The key exports were chemicals, which totaled $4.44 billion, followed by oil and gas, primary metals, and transportation equipment. The United States is the third largest export destination for Italian goods, after Germany and France. In 2021, the US imported $49.4 billion worth of Italian products. The main imports were non-electrical machinery, chemicals, transportation equipment, and leather products.
Italy- California Trade
In particular in the United States, California has a strong exporting relationship with Italy. Out of all the states, California is a top exporter of goods to Italy, totaling approximately $1.54 billion worth in 2021, making Italy California’s 22nd largest export market. Agricultural products make up $344 million of all exported goods from California to Italy. Other key categories of exported California goods to Italy are computer/electronic products, chemicals, and miscellaneous manufactured goods. In 2021, California imported around $4.7 billion worth of Italian goods. The main imports included processed foods, beverages and tobacco products, non-electrical machinery, and transportation equipment. US Department of Commerce
Foreign Direct Investment
The United States and Italy also have retained a symbiotic foreign direct investment (FDI) relationship. In 2021, the US had approximately $28.09 billion in FDI to Italy and Italy had roughly $41 billion in FDI into the US. In 2019, Italian FDI in the US supported 98,900 jobs and contributed $283 million to research and development and another $2.3 billion to expanding US exports. The top industry sectors for Italian FDI in the US were: industrial equipment, renewable energy, metals, food and beverages, auto components, and software & IT services. Select USA
In California in 2021, Italy was the twenty-first largest source of FDI through foreign owned enterprises (FOEs). Italian FOEs provided 5,375jobs through 240 firms amounting to $406 million in wages. Top industry sectors were: professional/business services, retail trade, wholesale trade, leisure/hospitality and manufacturing (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