| Economy |
Two things define the Italian economy: its membership of the European Monetary Union and, the glaring divide between the industrialised, prosperous North and the rural and backward south. Industry and agriculture lag behind the service sector, which accounts for more than half the domestic product. Natural resources include fish, mercury, potash, marble, sulphur and coal. The major industries are machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing and, of course, the glamorous lot: tourism, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear and ceramics. Oil, petroleum, telecommunications and transport industries are important too. Italy’s major trading partners are Germany, France, UK, USA, Spain and Switzerland. Its agricultural products are typically Mediterranean, citrus fruits and
plump vegetables. Italy has had to curb high rates of inflation and implement budgets that comply with EMU norms. Unemployment in the South, wage flexibility, growth in pension entitlements and the ‘parallel economy’ are this capitalist country’s major economic concerns. |
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