Economy
01
Italian Trade
Italy is the production central of many products but some of the most popular and famous things that they create and export are: Wine, Fashion and Vehicles.
Wine is a part of italian culture as it has been around since the Romans took over and was once named enotria or “land of wine in the ancient times. However Italians aren’t the only people who appreciate Italian wine as Italy has made 29.9 billion dollars selling and exporting many different kinds of wine. Montepulciano,Villa Raiano Fiano di Avellino and Pieropan Soave Classico La Rocca are many of the delicious and well known wines that have made Italy the wine capital of the world and recently the largest producer of wine in the world beating out France by about 300 million litres!
Many iconic fashion labels in the world of style come from Italy including big names like: Gucci, Dolce and Gabbana, Versace, Valentino and Prada who sell trend setting pieces that cost thousands of dollars. These innovative pieces of clothing make Italy a whopping 64.2 billion dollars a year and have put Italy on top ten fashion countries list which is a big honour. Many of these pieces are displayed at big fashion shows such as: New York fashion week, Milan (Italy) fashion week and Paris fashion week and with so many Italian brands present and up and coming Italy could be the next most fashionable country.
Ferrari, Lamborghini, Fiat and Lancia, you may have heard these popular car brand names before but did you know that they are all Italian car brands! Ferrari and Lamborghini sell some of the fastest and most expensive cars in the world with cars prices ranging up to 2.7 million, no wonder Italy earned 38.4 billion dollars in car sales in 2015. Fiats on the other hand are quite common and less expensive but they are still great cars as they have one many automobile awards.
Major Industries in Italy
Italy is quite strong in many industries including: forestry, fishing, mining and energy and power. In the post-war period, Italy was transformed from an agricultural based economy which had been severely affected by the consequences of the World Wars, into one of the world's most industrialized nations, and a leading country in world trade and exports. This resulted in the plung of Italy’s agricultural community but because of the other industries Italy is strong in they haven’t felt much of the loss.
Forestry
Approximately 90% of Italian forest product exports consist of wooden furniture, semi-finished wood products, and other finished wood products. In 2001, the Italian wood and wood product sectors employed 413,872 workers in 87,546 companies with a total turnover of about $35 billion, with the furniture sector accounting for $20.8 billion. Imports of forest products in 2001 were valued at $4.68 billion, while exports totaled $11.3 billion. In 2002, the Italian wood and wood product sectors employed 412,815 workers in 87,906 companies with a total turnover of about $36 billion. Some 80% of the raw materials used for manufacturing furnished wooden products are imported. Imports of forest products in 2004 were valued at $9.5 billion, while exports totaled $4.3 billion.
Fishing
Italy's geography provides abundant access to marine fishing. Peninsular Italy and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia together have over 8,000 km (4,900 mi) of coastline and over 800 landing ports equipped for fishing boats. 50,000 fishermen around Italy have to take part just to meet domestic needs. As of 2000 there were 18,390 Italian fishing vessels with a fishing capacity (gross tonnage) of 207,550 tons. The majority of the Italian fish harvest (up to 50%) is not officially recorded but sold directly to restaurants, wholesalers, and fishmongers. Anchovy, rainbow trout, sardine, and European hake are the main finfish species caught. Sponges and coral are also commercially important. There are over a thousand intensive production fish farms that belong to the Italian Fish Farming Association, with 60% located in northern Italy. Total Italian aquaculture production in 2003 was 244,000 tons, valued at €250 million.
Mining
Although Italy was relatively poor in mineral resources, it was, nevertheless, a major producer of feldspar, pumice and related materials, as well as of crude steel, cement (second-largest in the EU), and a leading producer of dimension stone and marble. Industrial mineral production in 2003, including construction materials, was the most important sector of the economy. Marble and travertine quarrying from the famous mines in the Massa and Carrara areas was still significant. Marble was quarried at hundreds of locations from the Alps to Sicily. The most important white-marble-producing area was in the Apuan Alps, near Carrara, and accounted for one-third of the country's 100,000 tons of white marble. Important colored-marble-producing areas included the Lazio region, Lombardy, the Po Valley, Puglia, Sicily, Venice, and Verona-Vincenza.
Oil and Natural Gas
Italy's proven oil and natural gas reserves are each the fourth-largest in the European Union (EU). The country has completely stopped the production of coal. Still, Italy must rely heavily on foreign sources to meet its energy needs. According to the Oil and Gas Journal, Italy has proven oil reserves estimated at 622 million barrels, as of 1 January 2015. Estimated production in 2015 averaged 147,000 barrels daily, of which crude oil accounted for 104,000 barrels per day.
Currency
The euro replaced the lira as the official currency of Italy in 2002. The euro is divided into 100 cents. There are coins in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 cents and 1 euro and 2 euros. There are notes of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, and 500 euros. The lira (Italy’s old currency) was changed into the euro in 1992 the same year Italy withdrew from the ERM and unfortunately that caused a 7% devalue in the lira. However the lira is still used in many countries including: Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and Jordon so even though Italy has left this type of currency other countries are still holding on.
-1 Euro is 1.48 Canadian dollars
-1 Euro is 1.09 American dollars
-1 Euro is 7.14 Chinese Yuans
-1 Euro is 3.27 Turkish liras
-1 Euro is 124.16 Japanese Yens