#SoseXpress - Press Review 28 Novembre/4 December

The Italian G20 Presidency officially begins on the 1st of December. We need to provide the necessary responses to the global challenges ahead of us. We will work together to build, today, the world of tomorrow, to hand our children a better Planet.

Giuseppe Conte, President of the Council of Ministers

The Debate of Ideas

 

Milano Hub: the Bank of Italy’s new innovation center supporting the evolution of the Italian financial market.

The Bank of Italy presented Milano Hub, the new innovation center supporting the Italian financial market's digital evolution and attracting talent and investment.

Milano Hub will be the physical or virtual location in which the Bank of Italy will assist the various operators, collaborate in developing projects, and facilitate the quality and security assessment of specific innovations.

The objective is to support the adoption of digital technologies in the Italian financial market and encourage their safe use to preserve financial stability and avoid the adoption of risky and potentially dangerous solutions.

Studies, research and numbers

 

Censis Report: the most significant socio-economic phenomena in the Country.

Censis presented its 54th Report on the Country's social situation in 2020.  It investigates the most significant socio-economic phenomena of the Country during this extremely uncertain period we are experiencing.

The pandemic is sharpening social disparities. At this particular time, employment is the discriminating factor. 

The Report paints a gloomy picture of a system that moves with difficulty. The pandemic has increased fear and decreased confidence in the future. After the pandemic breaking out, 7,6 million families suffered a severe worsening of their living standards due to income reduction and fixed expenses to pay. 23,2 million Italians had to face difficulties caused by reduced family incomes; the first pandemic wave affected 2 million; 9 million Italians integrated their incomes thanks to relatives or banks. The Report describes with strength the reality of thousands of citizens who are afraid to remain without any income. This is true for 53% of low-income people, while 42% of Italians consider their job at risk. 

 

ISTAT published the data on the quarterly national accounts.

In the third quarter of 2020, the seasonally and calendar adjusted chained volume measure (the reference year 2015) of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by 15.9 % compared to the previous quarter. It decreased by 5% compared to the third quarter of 2019. On 30th October, the GDP increase was of 16,1%, while the downward trend amounted to 4,7%. 

 

Food Sector: a double-digit contraction.

Innovation and strategic investment represent the key to change the sector. The analysis carried out in the report “Foodservice Market Monitor by Deloitte and Alma highlights a double-digit decrease compared to 2019. 2020 forecasts for the Italian and global foodservice industry show a severe downward trend. However, it necessary to find new opportunities to relaunch the food market. The study realized by Deloitte in collaboration with ALMA was presented within “Identità Golose 2020”,  one of the most prestigious food and wine conventions in the world. 

 

Italy’s economic outlook: the data by Istat.

In 2020 Italian GDP is expected to decrease by 8.9% in real term and then increase in 2021 as for its main European partners.

In the third quarter, the Italian GDP, like other major European countries, recorded a considerable recovery (+15,9% compared to the preceding quarter) in all main economic sectors. Compared to the preceding three months, the value-added increased in industry (+30,4%) and construction (+45,9%), registering positive results also in trade, transport, accommodation, and catering sectors (+25,6%). However, the improved production rates have reached pre-crisis levels. 

 

Foreign investment attractiveness: Italy does not get a passing grade.

AIBE (Association of Foreign Banks in Italy), in collaboration with Censis, realized a study on the Italian attractiveness for foreign investments. The survey regarded an international panel of financial companies, investment funds, and multinational corporations. According to the results, the attractiveness index (44,4%) increased by 3,5% compared to 2019. However, Italy has not got a passing grade yet. Besides the pandemic,  other risk factors, such as the tax burden, the length of legal proceedings, the bureaucratic and regulatory burden, corruption, and scarce legal certainty cause great uncertainty.

The voice of Stakeholders

 

Confartigianato: production activities increase and improve in orange areas.

By now, orange zones prevail in Italy: a new territorial configuration including nine regions, Basilicata, Calabria, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Lombardy, Marche, Piedmont, Puglia and Umbria, and involving 48,2% of citizens and 51,7% of GDP. 60,4% of “Made in Italy” foreign trade and 53,9% of craftmanship are located in the orange zones. 

 

Confartigianato: Buying handicraft products from local territory for Christmas creates value.

In the first nine months of 2020, the retail sale volume decreased by 7,2%. Food products registered an increase of 1,4% in sales. Christmas could overturn these data considering the Italians’ habits in the period 2017-2019 when only December reported a rise in retail sales of 25,1% compared to the monthly average on an annual basis (16,4% in food products and 31,5% in non-food products).

Innovation

 

Connection at work: In Italy, 78% of workers in difficulty.

An inadequate internet connection continues causing Italian workers many difficulties. The needs related to smart working and online teaching during the pandemic highlighted the problems due to the lack of broadband and ultra-broadband connections. This situation emerges in the study “Connection at work: Italy” by CorCom. 

 

Digital transformation in Italy: where are we today?

The Report on Digital Transformation in Italy produced by Censis in collaboration with TIM Research Center starts with the 2020 edition of DESI (Digital Economy and Society Index). It describes the evolution of Italy's digital culture during and after the lockdown brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

75% of adult individuals used the Internet habitually during the lockdown and acquired gital skills. 43 million interacted with relatives and friends online. For the first time, 8,7 million citizens used the digital services of the PA, and 9 Italians out of ten continued working thanks to their Internet connection. 

 

Digital Financial and insurance services: Covid “contribution”.

The health emergency and the following lockdown affected consumers' and SMEs' demand for digital financial and insurance services. Consumers had to interact with banks and insurance companies in difficult times, and these operators' ability to provide adequate digital tools was crucial for customers' satisfaction. At the same time, customers began to use more Fintech & Insurtech services. Similarly, SMEs reduced the use of traditional solutions and physical interaction during the lockdown, shifting to digital solutions.

Local Authorities

 

400 million euro allocated to Municipalities to finance urgent food solidarity measures.

“Ristori Decree ter (Law Decree No. 144/2020) was published on the Official Gazette. It concerns “Urgent measures related to the Covid-19 outbreak.” The Decree allocates 2 billion Euro to extend the measures provided for the preceding decrees supporting productive activities and the workers strongly affected by the second phase of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Decree allocates 400 million Euro in 2020 to Municipalities to adopt urgent “food solidarity” measures. 

The world of MEF

 

Receipts Lottery: from 1 December the lottery code is available.

Another tool to promote the use of electronic currency. From 1 January, the first draw of cash prizes will take place, but from 1 December, it is possible to register at the Government portal to obtain the code to show to the shopkeepers.

An implementing decree by the Ministry of Economy will start the Christmas refund, allocated in February to citizens every ten purchases made by electronic currency. 

 

MEF: in November 2020 the public sector’s financial need amounts to 17,5 billion euro.

The State General Accounting Department published the data revealing that in November 2020, the public sector’s financial need amounts to 17,500 million. The increase was of 18,900 million compared to the same month of last year (surplus of 1,380 million). In the first eleven months of the current year, the financial need amounts to 155,700 million, increasing by 104,200 million compared to the same period of 2019. This increase is due to the allocation of funds by the Public Administrations and INPS according to the decrees contrasting the epidemiological emergency.