Scalfarotto: Italian exports to China grow by 33%

Between Italy and China last year the interchange was about 38 billion euros, still insufficient. The two economies, in fact, have such complementarities and dimensions that it is reasonable to expect something more. And the first signs are coming.

"Last year, our exports rose by 6%, while our imports have dropped a bit," says Ivan Scalfarotto, Undersecretary for Economic Development. The balance is thus improving and from a negative figure of 17.8 billion in 2015, it goes to -16.2 billion. The positive trend continues and is seen in the first two months of this year with Italian exports to China increased by 33.7% compared to the same period of 2016. This is an important imbalance, and for Beijing we start to be more Partners and less customers. If, in fact, only cheap products from China were sold, selling Chinese to high technology allows a comparator relationship similar to what the Chinese have with the Germans. "

"The first data of 2017 are interesting especially from the point of view of the trend - continues Scalfarotto - because we have traditionally been for China a market in some way invading with their products; today with the Chinese economy increasing investment in High technology, Italy can and must play a different role. " "The undersecretary of the Mass said:" The demographic factor counts: it is a time of great disturbance, many people move from country to city, they have higher income available and create a middle class, who aspires to buy Italian products around the world ". This is why Scalfarotto expects in the coming years an increase in the volume of business and, consequently, an improvement of our exports to China in order to reduce the trade deficit.

Work with China is also a work of system and continuity of relationships. Over the past two years, a series of institutional visits were made by ministers and undersecretaries (only Scalfarotto is in his sixth visit in nine months), culminating with those of the chairman of the Senate Grasso, of the Republic of Mattarella and now of the President of the Council, Paolo Gentiloni, the only G7 leader present at the Beijing Belt and Road Convention, met today with Li Keqiang counterpart and lunch (one of the leaders here) with President Xi Jinping. The presence of Gentiloni is also important because it confirms that the Chinese strategy Belt and Road, a modern silk road with the aim of building infrastructures and enhancing the connectivity of Eurasia, for Chinese without Italy is a monk.

The Italian-China Business Forum, under the auspices of the Italian President Marco Tronchetti Provera and of the Chinese Tian Guoli, has become more concrete. "There will be another appointment by the end of the year, maybe in November, to draw the sum of what has been done so far," explains Pirelli's chief executive. The Business Forum Presidency organized yesterday (as it reads) the China-Italy Sme Investment and Trade Forum at the Bank of China headquarters at Fuxingmennei Dajie, near Tiananmen Square. The goal is to develop relationships between Italian and Chinese companies through specific B2B events that have been held throughout the day.

The 70 small and medium-sized Italian companies involved (nearly 170 Chinese) operate mainly in the fields of food, clothing and sport. The Beijing Municipal Council is sending out to the Winter Olympics in 2022 and was commissioned by the Organizing Committee to prepare the venues where the races take place. For the planning and organizational skills, the Chinese turned to Trentino Development, which yesterday signed an agreement with the giant Beijing Enterprises Group, which was entrusted with the Olympic project (an investment of four billion euros). The Trentino company will contribute from the point of view of the know-how and the coordination of the chain. "We will also involve our companies in the sector," said Ugo Rossi, chairman of the Autonomous Province of Trento, "and we will follow an integrated promotion of our territory: as the ski market in China grows, the Chinese are also interested in skiing in Other places, like ours, where the World Cup is also held. "