Why Italy economy is not so bad: good comparison and data to confirm it

[paolo marenco]

I agree with Prof Marco Fortis when he says" we have to make a marketing of Italy and its economy indicators that confirm we are, in many case, only second to Germany". I attach his presentation of October 9th, at Confindustria ANIMA ( Mechanical italian  industry), inspiring in this senseFORTIS%20Assemblea%20ANIMA%209%20ottobre%202012.ppt

[Tommaso Careri]

In 2013, with a balanced budget, Italy could have a great primary surplus to exploit. And if we will do the structural reforms and we will cut the waste, maybe we could finance the growth and in particular the startups. Also without financing and resources the growth is possible by cutting bureaucracy for entrepreneurs, and especially for the younger of them. Debts are not a problem if they are finalized to the economical growth.

This is the only way to go out from the crisis  

[Angelo Bonomi]

I substantially agree with Fortis observations on the reality of Italian debt and the necessity to improve an image of Italy more close to its reality. I would comment instead the reported list of actions made by Centro Studi Confindustria, necessary to increase the Italian GNP, especially for the case of SMEs involved in Made in Italy productions. In such list R&D is only one and last of the 14 presented actions confirming my idea that in Italy we speak a lot about but do little R&D. Interventions in such matter show effects only in the medium and long term. That means that the problem of R&D, and related technology innovations, should be faced now as there are no last minute solutions to possible future competitive technologies arriving for example from Asian countries. The technological aggressive entering of Japan industry in markets in the seventies and eighties of the last century is a good historical example of what it could happen.. Made in Italy SMEs make technological innovation mainly by learning by doing and not by R&D. When R&D should be done, contract research is normally necessary in absence of suitable internal laboratories. Innovation made by learning by doing is essentially incremental, now sufficient to maintain the existing technological advances, but not necessarily in the future when new radical innovations may enter in competition. Normally in Italy the question of R&D is thought solved by interfacing SMEs with universities, however that is not true as universities may supply technical and scientific support to an R&D project, but not skill for the socio-economic aspects of R&D. Such skill is not necessarily present in SMEs accustomed to make innovation only by learning by doing. This point is worsened by the lack in Italy of really effective bridge organizations between scientific research and industrial technological needs. Further there are doubts about the real efficiency of public aid to R&D and settlement of NTBF (New Technology Based Firms). In fact it should be questioned whether largely sustained (in words) development of Italian NTBF will result competitive against firms in other countries active by much more time and with much more investments available. Finally it should be questioned whether development of Italian NTBF will be in measure to compensate a possible future breakdown of the present Made in Italy industry. In conclusion it may be questioned whether technology innovation for Made in Italy SMEs is sufficiently focused in term of importance and efficiently promoted.