On 23 November, the Italian Embassy in Germany and the Italo-Germanic Chamber of Commerce (AHK Italien) held an event in Berlin to present “Business Outlook: Italy 2022”, a report focused on business prospects for German companies in Italy.
The event, organized in collaboration with the German Union of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry, was attended, among the others, by Italian Ambassador to Germany, Armando Varricchio and by President of AHK Italien Monica Poggio.
AHK Italien, founded in 1921, is an association of entrepreneurs based in Milan, which operates under the supervision of the German Ministry for the Economy and Energy to promote economic relations among businesses in the two countries.
Ambassador Armando Varricchio pointed out that economic relations between Italy and Germany have shown, despite the pandemic, significant resilience in 2020: during what was “a terrible year for international economic relations, trade between Italy and Germany did not decrease much, reaching a total €116 billions compared to the €126 billions of the previous year” he said.
Furthermore, bilateral relations have marked a strong recovery in 2021. “We have – concluded Ambassador Varricchio – an excellent relationship on which we can build an effective strategic partnership in the coming years, working together in areas like research and innovation, and concentrating in particular on sectors with high growth potential and high technological intensity such as aerospace, microelectronics, biotechnologies and, in general, all the digital, sustainable technologies”.
It is important to note that there is a growing mood of satisfaction among the companies surveyed, who see their current situation as positive and expect improvement or stability in the coming year. Almost half the companies plan to increase their investments, in fact, while 52% are considering employing more personnel.
According to President Monica Poggio, “achieving the goals and calming the fears of Italo-German enterprises will be fundamental in guiding the recovery and monitoring its strong points and the risks as they arise. To be able to do this with the Italian Embassy in Berlin confirms the strength of the bond between the two countries and the ways in which the economic exchange has affected the growth and stability of Italy and Germany alike.”
“Businesses – Ms. Poggio pointed out– tend to be optimistic about the future, and we are experiencing rapid and sustained growth at this time, but we need to provide clear-eyed answers to the potential dangers posed by certain changes that are taking place, like ecological transition, and that could derail the recovery to some extent in this new stage”.
