One of the traditional strong points of Italy’s slowly growing economy – exports – is slipping, causing about prospects for an economic turnaround.
ISTAT, Italy’s National Statistics Institute, said last week that Italian exports to markets outside the EU fell by 3.7 percent in September, compared with the same month last year.
Exports represent an excessively large sector of the Italian economy; ISTAT reports that nearly a third of Italy’s GDP comes from products sold beyond Italy’s borders.
The reduction in exports comes in spite of a weaker euro. The currency has lost nearly 10 percent of its value against the dollar during last nine months. currencies. Usually a weaker currency increases a country’s exports in countries which use other currencies.