About Italy

Country name Italy*** and State (The Republic of Italy, la Repubblica Italiana).

Area: 301,318 square kilometers.

Population 57.68 million (1999). Mainly Italians. Italian is spoken, French and German in some border areas. The majority of the population is Catholic.

Capital Roma, population 2,644,000 (end of 1999).

Head of State President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, elected on May 13, 1999, is the head of state.

Important holidays Emancipation Day: April 25th, National Day: June 2nd.

Brief description Located in the south of Europe, it includes the Apennine Peninsula and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. North of the Alps as a barrier and France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia border, east, south and west of the Mediterranean Sea were adjacent to the Adriatic Sea, the Ionian Sea and the Tyrrhenian Sea. The coastline is about 7200 kilometers long. Most of the area is subtropical Mediterranean climate. The average temperature in January 2 ~ 10 ℃, July 23 ~ 26 ℃.

Italy is an ancient civilization, through the Roman **** and (509 ~ 28 years ago) and the Roman Empire (27 ~ 476 years ago) period, 962 years by the Holy Roman Empire ruled the 11th century Norman invasion of the south and the establishment of the Kingdom. 12 ~ 13 centuries split into many kingdoms, principalities, autonomous cities and small feudal territories. 16 centuries have been occupied by the French, Western and Austrian. In March 1861, the Kingdom of Italy was established, and in 1870 the army of the Kingdom conquered Rome and completed the unification. on October 31, 1922, Mussolini came to power and implemented the fascist rule for more than 20 years. on June 2, 1946, the **** and the country was established. After the war, there were frequent changes of government in Italy, but the government's internal and external policies were characterized by relative stability and continuity.

Politics In the national elections held in May 2001, the center-right coalition "Freedom House" led by Berlusconi defeated the center-left "Olive Tree Union", which had been in power for five years. in June, the 59th post-war government of Italy was formed, with Berlusconi as prime minister. In June, the 59th post-war Italian government was formed, with Bey as prime minister. The new government embarked on substantial reforms in a range of areas, including the judiciary, taxation, and labor security, and relations with opposition parties and labor unions tended to be strained. In diplomacy, Italy is closer to the United States and emphasizes the protection of its national interests in European Union affairs.

The current constitution was adopted on December 22, 1947 by the Constituent Assembly. The Constitution establishes Italy as a democratic **** and state based on labor. The President represents the country externally and is elected by a joint session of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President and is responsible to Parliament.

Parliament Parliament is the supreme legislative and supervisory body and consists of the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies of the ****he State. The two chambers are equal in power and can pass their own resolutions, but the resolutions of the two chambers are interrelated. The Senate and the House of Representatives have 315 and 630 seats respectively, the Senate and the House of Representatives are elected by universal suffrage for a term of five years. The President has the right to appoint five senators for life during his term of office. The main functions of the parliament are: to enact and amend the constitution and laws, to elect the president, to consider and pass a motion of confidence or no confidence in the government, to supervise the work of the government, to discuss and approve the national budget and final accounts, to have the power of impeachment over the president, prime minister and ministers, to decide on the state of war and to grant the government the necessary political decision-making power, etc. The parliament has the authority to decide on the state of war and the power to make political decisions. The current, fourteenth post-war parliament was elected in May 2001, with Senate President Marcello Pera (Forza Italia) and Chamber of Deputies President Pier Ferdinando Casini (Catholic Democratic Center). The seats held by the center-right and center-left camps and their parties in the two chambers are as follows:

House of Representatives Senate

Freedom House (ruling coalition) 367 173

Forza Italia 189 82

League of the Nation 96 46

The "White Flower" 40 29

Northern League 30 17

New Socialists 2 1

"Sparks"-Social Movement - 1

Independent Candidates 10 -

Olive Tree Coalition (opposition coalition) 24 117

Left Democrats 138 62

"Daisies" 76 42

"Sunflowers" 18 16

*** Proletarians 9 3<

Independent candidates 7 5

Regional parties 4 3

Values Italy - 1

European Democrats - 2

Reconstruction ****producers party 11 3

Government The current government was sworn in on June 11, 2001, the Italian post-war The current government was sworn in on June 11, 2001, the 59th post-war government in Italy. The cabinet consists of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini, Deputy Prime Minister Marco Follini, Interior Minister Giuseppe Pisanu, Economy and Finance Minister Domenico Siniscalco, and the President of the Republic of Italy. Domenico Siniscalco, Minister of Defense Antonio Martino, Minister of Productive Activities Antonio Marzano, Minister of Environment and Territorial Protection Altero Matteoli. Roberto Castelli, Minister of Justice, Pietro Lunardi, Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation, Giovanni Alemanno, Minister of Agricultural and Forestry Policies, Roberto Maroni, Minister of Labor and Social Policies, Giulio Marzano, Minister of Cultural Heritage. Maroni, Minister of Cultural Heritage Giuliano Urbani, Minister of Communications Maurizio Gasparri, Minister of Health Gerolamo Sirchia, Minister of Innovation and Technology Lucio Stanca, Minister of Institutional Reforms and Decentralization The Minister for Institutional Reform and Decentralization Roberto Calderoli, the Minister for Relations with Parliament Carlo Giovanardi, the Minister for Regional Affairs Enrico La Loggia, the Minister for the Implementation of Government Programs Claudio Scajola, the Minister for Equal Opportunities, the Minister for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children, the Minister for the Protection of the Rights of Women and Children, the Minister for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children and the Minister for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children, the Minister for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children and the Minister for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children. -Mario Baccini, Letizia Moratti, Minister of Education, University and Scientific Research, Gianni Letta and Paolo Bonaiuti, Deputy Ministers in the Prime Minister's Office.

Administrative divisions The country is divided into 20 administrative divisions, 103 provinces and 8,088 municipalities. 20 administrative divisions include 15 autonomous regions: Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto, Liguria, Emilia Romagna, Tuscany, Umbria, Lazio, Marche, Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria, Puglia and Puglia. Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria and the five Special Autonomous Regions Valle d'Aosta, Trentino Alto Adige, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Sicily and Sardinia, which were created for reasons of ethnic minorities, history and remoteness, among others.

The Judiciary The Supreme Council of Justice is the highest judicial authority, with an independent judicial system and the power to appoint judges, with the power to appoint, assign, transfer, promote and prescribe measures for judges. It is composed of 33 members, with the President as Chairman and the President of the Supreme Court and the Attorney General as ex officio members. The other members are composed of 10 members (lawyers and professors of justice) elected by the Parliament and 20 judges elected by the entire bench for a four-year term, which is non-renewable and part-time. The Constitutional Court, which is primarily responsible for checking and supervising the constitutionality of legal texts, consists of 15 judges appointed for a term of nine years, without the possibility of part-time employment, and enjoys immunity. Renato Granatta, President of the Constitutional Court, and Vittorio Sgroi, President of the Supreme Court.

There are also, in order, magistrates of conciliation, courts of first instance (for misdemeanors), tribunals, courts of first instance (in charge of civil and criminal cases), courts of appeal, and the Court of Audit (in charge of public **** accounts and pensions), among others.

Political Parties The main political parties in Italy are:

(1) Forza Italia (Italian Forces): founded in January 1994 by Silvio Berlusconi (Silvio Berlusconi). The party was formed before the national election in March 1994, and its main strength came from the Feninvest Group led by Berlusconi and some of the forces that had been divided after the decline of the traditional ruling party. It won the national election in March (21% of the vote) and the European Parliament election in June of the same year, and became a significant political force in the Italian political arena. In the 1996 general elections, it lost some of its power, with only 20.6% of the vote, and in the April 2000 Italian local elections, it gained significant strength. In 2001, the party won the national election with 29.5% of the vote and became the largest party in the country. 300,000 people were registered as members of the party in 2000.

(2) Partito Democratico della Sinistra Italiana: Formerly known as the Italian ****production party founded in 1921, the party changed its name to this in 1991. It has been the main opposition party in Italy since 1947, with a complete organizational mechanism and a relatively broad mass base. In the April 1996 general election, the party won 21.2% of the vote and became the backbone of the ruling coalition. in February 1998, the party took the lead in initiating and promoting the establishment of the "Democrats of the Left" (Democrats of the Left), composed of the Left Democratic Party (PDS), the Labor Party (PL), the Left Wing of the **** and Party (LFP), the Solidarità **** Produceri (SOLIDARITATORI), the Social Christian Movement (SCM) and other left-wing forces, on the premise that the respective organizations were not to be dissolved for the time being. " (Democratici di Sinistra), a new political party. The party has a membership of 670,000 (2000), and in January 2000 the party held a general election in Turin, electing Walter Veltroni as national secretary and Darius as president. In the 2001 national election, the Left Democratic Party won only 16-6% of the vote, falling to a historic low and losing its position in power. In November of the same year, the party held its second congress in Pesaro, elected Piero Fassino (Piero Fassino) as General Secretary, D'Alema stayed as President.

(3) "Daisy Alliance" (Margherita) by the Italian People's Party (PPI), the Democratic People's Party (Democratici), the Italian Renewal Party and the European Union for Democracy (UDEUR) and other center-left camp of the center parties. It won 14.5% of the vote in the 2001 national elections. The leader is Francesco Rutelli, former mayor of Rome and prime ministerial candidate of the center-left coalition.

(4) National Alliance (Alleanza Nazionale): formerly the original Italian social movement - the National Right, founded in 1946, because of its far-right coloring, the situation is more isolated. 1993 the end of the current name. After the reform, the party took on a more moderate face and rapidly expanded its power. 13-5% of the vote in the March 1994 general election, and for the first time joined the cabinet to participate in politics, held a platform conference in February 1998, explicitly declared to sever ties with the Fascist past, and committed to establish the image of a new right-wing party. 532,000 party members were registered in 2000, and in June 2001, the party won the election. In June 2001, the party won 12% of the vote and returned to power. The party's leader, Gianfranco Fini, became deputy prime minister.

(5) Partito della Rifondazione Comunista Italiana (Italian Reconstruction **** Producers' Party): In December 1991, the party was reorganized on the basis of part of the strength of the former Italian **** Producers' Party. The party adheres to the traditional left-wing ideology and emphasizes the protection of the interests of workers in general and the lower and middle classes in particular. it won 8.6% of the vote in the 1996 general election and became an indispensable force in the parliamentary majority of the center-left coalition. the number of members of the Partito della Rifondazione Comunista Italiana stood at 90,000 in 2000, and the partisans of the Partito della Rifondazione Comunista Italiana withdrew from the center-left coalition and stood for the election independently with a share of 5% of the vote in the 2001 general election. General Secretary Fausto Bertinotti.

(6) The Northern League (Lega Nord): formerly known as the Lombard League, founded in April 1984, the party represents the interests of the majority of small and medium-sized enterprises, advocating federalism and local autonomy, and its power and influence is mainly concentrated in the northern region. In the 1996 general election, it won as much as 10.1% of the vote. Later on, because the party pushed the idea of federalism to the extreme and engaged in activities to split Italy, it was strongly opposed by the Italian government, parliament and public opinion, and its influence and support rate declined. The party abandoned separatism in the 2000 local elections. In the 2001 general elections, the party received only 3.9% of the vote, but joined the center-right coalition and became a member of the government. Secretary Umberto Bossi.

(7) The Biancofiore (White Flower Coalition) is a centrist party of two right-wing formations, the Catholic Democratic Center (CCD) and the Christian Democrats for Unity (CDU), led by Piero Ferdinando Cáceres, who is the leader of the Biancofiore coalition. -Pier Ferdinando Casini and Rocco Buttiglione. The coalition received 5.8% and 3.2% of the vote in the two elections of 1996 and 2001, respectively.

Important people Carlo Azeglio Ciampi: President. born in 1920. Born in 1920. Graduated from the Faculty of Literature and the Faculty of Law of the University of Pisa. He is a well-known Italian economist and financial expert. A non-partisan, he was Governor of the Central Bank in 1979, Prime Minister of the Government from 1993 to 1994, Minister of the Treasury in 1996, and President in 1999.

Silvio Berlusconi: Prime Minister, born in 1936. Italian famous entrepreneur, has a wealth of about 1.5 billion dollars. He founded the Feninvest Group annual turnover of 7 billion lire, mastered the country's largest three private television stations, the famous AC Milan soccer club, Mondadori Publishing House, "Times" and "Panorama" weekly "daily" and other major newspapers and financial, insurance, commercial and other sectors of the company **** 300 companies and enterprises to become Italy's domestic second only to the second largest private group of Fiat Group. 1994, he founded the "Forza Italia", the "Italian Power". In 1994, he created "Forza Italia" and won the election that year, becoming the 53rd Prime Minister of the post-war government. He stepped down seven months later, and in May 2001, he led the center-right coalition Freedom House to another national election victory, and in June he became prime minister of the 59th government.

Economy Due to the global economic downturn, the Italian economy grew slowly in 2001, falling short of the government's 2% forecast. The center-right government launched a "100-day plan" to revitalize the economy, including encouraging investment, increasing employment, abolishing inheritance and gift taxes, easing the burden on businesses, promoting industrial and infrastructure development, reforming the labor system, reducing health care spending, raising the minimum pension, phasing out the underground economy, and adopting high technology, among other things, which was well received by business owners. These measures were well received by business owners, but labor-management tensions increased.

The main economic indicators for 2001 were as follows:

Gross domestic product (GDP): 1,216.583 billion euros (about 1094.925 billion U.S. dollars).

GDP per capita: 210,919,400 euros (about 18,983 dollars).

GDP growth rate: 1.8%.

Currency name: lira, euro.

Exchange rate: 1 EUR = 0.9 USD, 1000 Lira = 0.621 EUR.

Inflation rate: 1.4%.

Unemployment rate: 9.5%.

Resources Mineral resources are poor, only hydro, geothermal, natural gas, marble, mercury, sulfur and other resources, and a small amount of lead, aluminum, zinc and bauxite.

Industry Three-quarters of the energy supply and the main industrial raw materials rely on foreign imports, while more than 1/3 of the products for export. Historically, the Italian state has had a more developed participatory system of enterprise. Erie, Eni and Efim used to be the three major state-run consortiums, accounting for about 1/3 of the country's industrial output, and operating in sectors such as iron and steel, shipbuilding, machinery, petroleum, chemicals and arms. Since the 1990s, the government has accelerated the privatization of state-owned enterprises. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) occupy an important position in the Italian economy, with greater advantages in tanning, footwear, clothing, textiles, furniture, kitchen equipment, ceramic tiles, silk, jewelry, brewing, machinery, marble mining and mechanical industry, etc., and are characterized by a high degree of specialization, a strong adaptive capacity, and a large proportion of products exported. Italy's crude oil processing capacity ranks sixth in the world, with an annual refining capacity of about 100 million tons. 2001 crude steel output of 26.7 million tons, plastics and tractor production ranked sixth in the world, and power generation ranked ninth in the world. In recent years, attention has been paid to the development of new science and technology industries, mainly in the electronics industry. At present, the information and communication technology industry accounts for 6.2% of GNP. Production of major industrial products in recent years: (1995 = 100)

1998 1999 2000

Energy products 107.4 109.4 112.4

Metals, non-ferrous ores 99.9 91.6 98.9

Non-metallic ores 104.9 109.3 114.9

Chemical products 105.9 106.1 107.7

Metal products 106 105.1 106.8

Agricultural, industrial machinery 103.7 101 107.5

Office equipment 101 92.9 103.8

Electromechanical products 98.7 98.1 98.8

Transportation equipment 111.1 110.8 116.4

Food, Tobacco 104.4 107.5 109.7

Textiles, Clothing, Leather 99.9 95.1 95.6

Wood, Furniture 104 111.9 121.3

Paper, Publishing 107 111.5 112.5

General Index 104.3 104.4 107.7

(Source: Bank of Italy Annual Report 2000)

Agriculture and fisheries The value of agricultural production in 2000 was 52.8 trillion lire, or 2.4% of GDP. Due to the mountainous and lack of fertile soil, agricultural arable land area only accounted for 10% of the total area of the country (1995), the main agricultural output in 1995 as follows: crops 3606.5 billion lire, livestock 224.31 billion lire, forestry 733 billion lire, fisheries 230.7 billion lire. 2001 Italy's import and export of vegetables, beans, fruits, and 1.940 billion euros and 2.853 billion euros, respectively, an increase of 2.0 billion over the previous year, and 2.5 billion euros, respectively. Euro, respectively, 20.7% and 10.7% more than the previous year. Italy is the world's second largest wine producer after France, wine production in 2001 was 5.1 billion liters, 5% less than the previous year, accounting for about one-fifth of the world's total production, and its export profits in 2000 for 2 billion euros, the first nine months of 2001 for 1.8 billion euros. Except for fruits and vegetables, Italy is a pure importer of agricultural products. The total production of the main agricultural products in recent years is as follows (in tons):

1998 1999 2000

Wheat 8460.9 7947.2 7641.8

Corn 9127.3 10127.9 10196.3

Potatoes 2320.7 2155.8 2108

Tomatoes 6076.4 7498.1 7594.2

Grapes 9400.2 9599.6 9186.5

Olives 2664.9 3888.4 2927.4

Citrus 1422.3 1912.7 1852

Apples 2201.5 2383.7 2283.1

(Source) The annual net profit of tourism amounted to 13.098 million euros, slightly higher than the previous year's 12.893 million euros. Italy is rich in tourism resources, with a humid climate, beautiful scenery, many cultural relics, good beaches and mountainous areas, and well-connected roads. Hotels are mostly small and medium-sized, including hotels, campgrounds, tourist villages and agro-tourism residences, etc., including the country *** there are 115,000, in 2000 received 44.53 million domestic tourists and foreign tourists 34.59 million; stayed in the number of trips were 194,813,000 for the nationals, 137,545,000 for foreigners. The main tourist cities are Rome, Florence and Venice.

Transportation Domestic transportation mainly relies on the road, the road is responsible for 2/3 of the passenger traffic and 70% of the freight traffic. 1989 highway toll revenue is about 3 trillion lire, in 1998 for 6,798 billion lire, more than doubled.

Railways: In 1995, the total length of 19,527 kilometers, of which 80% of the state-run railroads, the rest of the private railroads. 2001 National Railways made a profit of 20 million euros for the first time. The group now has 106,000 employees, guaranteeing the operation of 7,500 trains per day; the annual passenger volume of 474 million passengers and 87 million tons of freight. The group has 80,000 rolling stock on 16,000 kilometers of railroads and is also responsible for the ferry to Sardinia across the Straits of Messina.

Roads: in 1995 the total length was 307,771 kilometers; there were 30.3 million motor vehicles in the country, 2.8 million commercial vehicles, and 6.2 million motorcycles and motorized pedicabs. road transport in 1996 was 175.5 billion tonne-kilometers. the total length of the Italian highways in 1999 was 6,453 kilometers, and the decision was made to sell off stakes in the state-owned highways, and to put up to 30,000 km of highways to local regions.

Water transport: due to the special geographical location, so the ship has been the main means of cargo transportation. 1986, there are 2031 merchant ships, fishing boats, with a total tonnage of 8.06 million tons; in 1995, the arrival of 294 million tons of goods; the departure of 108 million tons of goods (of which 51 million tons shipped to foreign countries); the country has Genoa, Naples, Venice, Trieste, Taranto, Livorno, Siracusa, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily, Sicily and Sicily. Genoa, Naples, Venice, Trieste, Taranto, Livorno, Syracuse and other 19 major ports, due to the establishment of autonomous management bodies in the port, the implementation of privatization and liberalization of port services and other measures, so its ports than other ports in the central Mediterranean to be more competitive.

Air transportation: In 1998, international arrivals amounted to 17.9 million, of which 6.6 million passengers traveled by Alitalia; departures amounted to 19.8 million, of which 6.9 million traveled by Alitalia. The main airports are Fiumicino in Rome, Linate and Malpensa in Milan, and Caselle in Turin.

Finance and Economy Huge deficits and public **** debt have always been the two major problems of the Italian economy. 1992, Italy began to intensify privatization efforts, successively on the National Labor Bank (BNL), Credit Italia (December 1993) and the Italian commercial banks (March 1994), as well as Erie, Eni, the National Insurance Corporation (INA), the National Electricity Corporation, Highway Company, and other large state-owned enterprises were privatized by selling their shares. At the same time, public spending was cut and the social welfare system was reformed, and the financial situation continued to improve, with the first batch joining the European Economic and Monetary Union (EEMU) in 1999. in 2001, the government's fiscal deficit amounted to 17.614 billion euros (34.3 trillion lire), or about 1.4 percent of GDP, the national debt was about 1,224 billion euros, or 109.4 percent of GDP, and foreign exchange reserves were 4,7201 billion dollars, including gold reserves of 4,721 billion dollars, of which 4,721 billion dollars was in gold. 472.01 billion dollars, of which 216.35 billion dollars are in gold reserves. The fiscal balance in recent years is as follows (in billions of euros):

1999 2000 2001

Fiscal deficit -194.17 -62.63 -176.14

Percentage of GDP (%) 1.8 0.5 1.4

Public **** debt 2457 2493 13300

of GDP (%) 114.9 110.6 109.4

Note: Public **** debt in trillions of euros in 1999 and 2000

(Source: ISTAT Report on the Economic Situation in 2001)

The main banks are as follows: San Paolo Imi, formerly known as Banca San Paolo di Torino, founded in 1563, with assets of 99 billion euros (2001); took over the Bank of Naples in 2000, including its 16.2% government stake. (IntesaBci ), formed by the merger of the Provincial Savings Bank of Lombardy with Banca Ambrovento in 1998, followed by the merger of the Savings Bank of Parma and the Banca Adriatica of Friuli in 1999, and then by the merger with the Banca Commerciale Italiana (BCI) in 2001, with total assets of 96.3 billion euros (2001). (UniCredito ), the first Italian banking group, merged with Banca d'Italia, Banca di Rollo and Torino to form UniCredito in October 1998, and merged again with Banca d'Italia Savings Banks of Trento and Rovereto and of Trieste in 1999, with assets of 732.2 billion euros (2001). Banca di Roma (Banca di Roma), founded on March 9, 1880, with assets of 25.4 billion euros (2001); in 1997, it acquired a 33% stake in the Erie Group, and at the end of 1999, it purchased one of the last state-owned banks in Italy, the Central Mediocredito Centrale (Mediocredito Centrale). Banca Nazionale del Lavoro (BNL), founded in August 1913, with assets of 19.8 billion euros (2001).

Foreign trade Foreign trade is the main pillar of the Italian economy. Traditional products are the mainstay of export earnings, mainly manufacturing accounting for a quarter of total output and three quarters of exports of products and services. Although the value of services is twice that of manufacturing, most services are related to the marketing or supply of manufacturing products. Specialized industrial zones and government policies to encourage exports have effectively contributed to export growth. Italy's foreign trade has been in surplus for many years, and is the world's third largest trade surplus country after Japan and Germany. As a result of the price hike of oil and the depreciation of the euro, Italy's trade surplus in 2001 was as high as 9.8 billion euros (19 trillion lire); of which imports were almost the same as in the previous year, totaling 495,499.0 million lire (260,179.0 million euros), an increase of 0.6% over the previous year, while exports amounted to 498,201.0 million lire (269,701.0 million euros), an increase of 3.6% over the previous year, mainly due to an increase in the number of exports to new Eastern markets such as Russia, China, Central and Eastern Europe and the Middle East. The foreign trade situation in recent years is as follows (in billions of euros):

2000 2001

Total 5139 5298.8

Imports 2559 2601.79

Exports 2580 2697.01

Difference 21 95.22

(Source: Italy) (Source: ISTAT Report on the Economic Situation in 2001)

Imports are mainly in oil, raw materials and foodstuffs, while exports are mainly in machinery and equipment, chemical products, household electrical appliances, textiles, garments, leather shoes, gold and silver jewelry and other light industrial products. Italy's foreign markets are mainly in Europe, and the regional distribution of Italy's foreign trade and import and export volume in 2001 are as follows: (unit: billion euros)

Import volume, year-on-year growth rate Export volume, year-on-year growth rate

European Union (EU) 1469.44 0.3% 1448.14 0.3%

EU member states 1284.40 1.3% 1220.28 0.4%

The EU is a member state of the European Union (EU), which is a member state of the European Union (EU).

EFTA 107.32 14.8% 110.32 13.5%

Russia 85.34 2.4% 35.39 40.4%

Other European Countries 33.73 25.1% 49.02 17.2%

EU Candidate Countries 159.20 19.7% 221.32 10.5%<

OPEC 181.13 -12.6% 102.68 20.7%

USA 127.78 -5.5% 262.12 -1.7%

MERCOSUR 34.55 -5.6% 37.49 -1.7%

China 74.81 6.4% 32.72 37.5%

Japan 62.6% 32.72 37.5%

Japan 62.6% 33.73 25.1% 49.02 17.5%

EU Candidate Countries 159.20 19.7% 221.32 10.5%

Japan 62.77 -2.2% 47.04 8.4%

Asian economies 63.50 -5.9% 98.80 4.4%

Other countries 202.22 0.3% 251.96 3.3%

Note: EFTA: European Free Trade Area countries; MERCOSUR: Markets of the South***. MERCOSUR: Market of the South***, mainly refers to Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina; Asian economies refer to: Singapore, South Korea, Malaysia, Thailand and other countries and Taiwan and Hong Kong.

(Source: ISTAT Economic Report 2001)

Import and export trade of major items in recent years: (in millions of US dollars)

1998 1999 2000

Exports (total) 245.7 235.2 238.3

Machinery, Transportation Equipment 110.0 105.0 110.0

Textiles, Clothing, Leather 38.5 37.0 41.0

Metal Products 14.2 14.8 16.8

Imports (Total) 218.4 220.3 236.6

Machinery, Transportation Equipment 74.5 83.0 93.5

Chemical Products 32.5 36.0 39.5

Energy products 18.5 19.5 22.3

Metals, non-ferrous 19.0 20.0 22.0

(Source: ISTAT press release 2000)

Prominent companies A brief summary of several large and prominent companies is as follows:

(1) Gruppo Fiat. Gruppo Fiat ), the full name of the Italian automobile manufacturing plant in Turin, was founded in 1899, and officially used the current name in 1906. Controlled by the Agnelli family, the business scope includes: all forms of automobiles and parts, commercial vehicles, agricultural and construction machinery, metallurgical products, production systems, aircraft and marine engines, publishing and communications, finance and insurance and business services and other businesses. In 2000, the Fiat Group had a turnover of more than 57 billion euros, with 1,064 companies in 64 countries around the world and *** a total of 223,000 employees, of whom more than 111,000 are located in overseas companies. Its 242 production plants have 167 located abroad, 131 R & D centers have 61 overseas. 2000 Fiat Auto *** production of 2.439 million cars, operating income of more than 25 billion euros, accounting for 45.5% of the group's total income. 2001 group loss of 791 million euros.

(2) National Hydrocarbons (Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi, ENI), also known as the "Eni Group". February 10, 1953 by the state-controlled oil, gas, petrochemical companies merged into. The business scope includes: crude oil, natural gas, chemicals and petrochemicals, nuclear fuel, coal, machinery and equipment, textile raw materials and clothing, mining and metallurgy, and contract engineering and construction and trade. 2001 group net profit of up to 7,745,000 euros, an increase of 1,974,000 euros compared with the previous year, or about 34.2%.

People's life In 2001, the total number of employed people in the country was 21.514 million, with 434,000 new jobs created, an increase of 2.1%. Among them, the agricultural population was 1.126 million, an increase of 0.6% year-on-year; the industrial population was 6.841 million, an increase of 1.1% year-on-year; the construction population was 1.707 million, an increase of 5.5% year-on-year; the service population was 13.548 million, an increase of 2.7% year-on-year; and the number of unemployed people was 2.061 million, accounting for 9.5%. Currently, there is an average of one television set for every 3.4 people, one radio for every 3.9 people, one telephone for every 1.7 people, 154 daily newspapers and 565 automobiles per 1,000 people. Over the years, Italian births have been zero or negative; in 2001, there were 544,000 births and 544,100 deaths, a population growth rate of zero, but a long life expectancy, averaging 75 years for men and 82 years for women.

The Southern Question The southern region includes the regions of Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Puglia, Calabria, Basilicata, and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. The South covers an area of 123,000 square kilometers, or 40.8% of all Italy, and has a population of 20.85 million, or 36% of the country's population. Although Italy is the fourth largest economic power in the European Union, due to historical reasons, Italy's southern economic and social development is seriously lagging behind, with a wide gap between the north and the south. Certain provinces and regions are even the most economically backward places in the EU. since 1995, despite the EU institutions and the Italian government to implement a variety of preferential policies for the region, its development is still not obvious, has become the Italian oldest problem. 1999, Italy's southern per capita GDP is only the north-central region