Investing in Italy

Italy is an EU member country and one of G-8 leading industrialized economies, having the seventh largest economy in the world. Its thriving small and medium enterprises play an important economic role. Italy has world-leading companies in manufacturing, automobiles, textiles, and agriculture.

Italy’s Main Industries

Italy is economically known for its strength in:

• Agriculture Sector
  • Maize corn
  • Olive Oil
  • Fruits and Vegetables
  • Flowers
  • Wine
  • Meat
  • Dairy Products
  • Services
    • Financial
      • Banking
      • Insurance
      • Asset Management
• Tourism
• Precious metals
  • gold
  • Industrial and Manufacturing
    • Iron and Steel
    • Chemicals
    • Machinery
    • Automotives
    • Precision Engineering
    • Textiles and CLothing

Italy’s Main Stock Exchanges

The main stock exchange in Italy is:

1. 1. Borsa Italiana
   1. Founded in 1808 and operated under state ownership until privatisation in 1997
   2. In 2007 was purchased by the London Stock Exchange
   3. Serves trading in equities, and plays an important role in Italy’s fixed income and derivatives market
   4. Some Indices

i. FTSE/MIB Index

ii. MIBTel

Glimpse into Italy’s Equity Market

Foreign equity investors have remained cautious, with investment inflows not being significant in 2010. Italy’s equities have been considerably impacted by the Euro-zone debt and default crisis, and amid an uncertain economic outlook, with the stock index down 12% during the 2010 year.

Market capitalization of stocks has been stable, increasing from $317 billion in 2009 to $318 billion in 2010.

Italy’s 10 Most Profitable Companies in 2010

Ways to Invest in Italy

There are a couple of different ways to invest in Italian companies:

• Through Italian Banks or foreign ones located in Italy
  • Banca d’Italia
  • Banco di Roma
  • Intesa Sanpaolo
  • Banca delle Marche
  • Canadian ETFs
    • EWI: NYSEArca – tracks the MSCI Italy Index
    • Through some international online brokers:
      • MB Trading
      • Interactive Brokers
      • TD Ameritrade
      • E-Trade
      • Questrade
      • optionsXpress
      • optionshouse
      • tradeMONSTER
      • Charles Schwab