GDP in the North-East has rebounded: 1.1 per cent. The boost is down to innovation
The north-east’s economy is picking up again. GDP, now back at 2000 levels at €191 billion – having peaked at €208 billion in 2007 when the crisis began – is regaining momentum and soaring by over 1.1 per cent, compared with 0.7 per cent for Italy as a whole. Employment has seen a loss of around 200,000 jobs in recent years, but thanks in part to the Jobs Act, permanent contracts are on the rise: 32,000 contracts in the first quarter alone in Veneto, compared with 24,000 in the same period last year; together with Friuli-Venezia Giulia and Trentino-Alto Adige, the figure is approaching 50,000. Exports are still growing, by 5 per cent compared with 4.6 per cent for Italy as a whole. The ‘new North-East’ may not have the momentum of the old ‘locomotive’, but it has certainly shifted into the gear of a fresh start. Continue reading
