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Italy vs. Slovenia

Economy

ItalySlovenia
Economy - overview

Italy's economy comprises a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less-developed, highly subsidized, agricultural south, with a legacy of unemployment and underdevelopment. The Italian economy is driven in large part by the manufacture of high-quality consumer goods produced by small and medium-sized enterprises, many of them family-owned. Italy also has a sizable underground economy, which by some estimates accounts for as much as 17% of GDP. These activities are most common within the agriculture, construction, and service sectors.

Italy is the third-largest economy in the euro zone, but its exceptionally high public debt and structural impediments to growth have rendered it vulnerable to scrutiny by financial markets. Public debt has increased steadily since 2007, reaching 131% of GDP in 2017. Investor concerns about Italy and the broader euro-zone crisis eased in 2013, bringing down Italy's borrowing costs on sovereign government debt from euro-era records. The government still faces pressure from investors and European partners to sustain its efforts to address Italy's longstanding structural economic problems, including labor market inefficiencies, a sluggish judicial system, and a weak banking sector. Italy's economy returned to modest growth in late 2014 for the first time since 2011. In 2015-16, Italy's economy grew at about 1% each year, and in 2017 growth accelerated to 1.5% of GDP. In 2017, overall unemployment was 11.4%, but youth unemployment remained high at 37.1%. GDP growth is projected to slow slightly in 2018.

With excellent infrastructure, a well-educated work force, and a strategic location between the Balkans and Western Europe, Slovenia has one of the highest per capita GDPs in Central Europe, despite having suffered a protracted recession in the 2008-09 period in the wake of the global financial crisis. Slovenia became the first 2004 EU entrant to adopt the euro (on 1 January 2007) and has experienced a stable political and economic transition.

 

In March 2004, Slovenia became the first transition country to graduate from borrower status to donor partner at the World Bank. In 2007, Slovenia was invited to begin the process for joining the OECD; it became a member in 2012. From 2014 to 2016, export-led growth, fueled by demand in larger European markets, pushed annual GDP growth above 2.3%. Growth reached 5.0% in 2017 and is projected to near or reach 5% in 2018. What used to be stubbornly high unemployment fell below 5.5% in early 2018, driven by strong exports and increasing consumption that boosted labor demand. Continued fiscal consolidation through increased tax collection and social security contributions will likely result in a balanced government budget in 2019.

 

Prime Minister CERAR's government took office in September 2014, pledging to press ahead with commitments to privatize a select group of state-run companies, rationalize public spending, and further stabilize the banking sector. Efforts to privatize Slovenia's largely state-owned banking sector have largely stalled, however, amid concerns about an ongoing dispute over Yugoslav-era foreign currency deposits.

GDP (purchasing power parity)$2,562,135,000,000 (2019 est.)

$2,553,384,000,000 (2018 est.)

$2,529,503,000,000 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$81.614 billion (2019 est.)

$79.095 billion (2018 est.)

$75.773 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - real growth rate0.34% (2019 est.)

0.83% (2018 est.)

1.73% (2017 est.)
2.4% (2019 est.)

4.24% (2018 est.)

5.14% (2017 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$42,492 (2019 est.)

$42,259 (2018 est.)

$41,785 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$39,088 (2019 est.)

$38,139 (2018 est.)

$36,670 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - composition by sectoragriculture: 2.1% (2017 est.)

industry: 23.9% (2017 est.)

services: 73.9% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 1.8% (2017 est.)

industry: 32.2% (2017 est.)

services: 65.9% (2017 est.)
Population below poverty line20.1% (2018 est.)12% (2018 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage sharelowest 10%: 2.3%

highest 10%: 26.8% (2000)
lowest 10%: 3.8%

highest 10%: 20.1% (2016)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)0.6% (2019 est.)

1.1% (2018 est.)

1.2% (2017 est.)
1.6% (2019 est.)

1.7% (2018 est.)

1.4% (2017 est.)
Labor force22.92 million (2020 est.)885,000 (2020 est.)
Labor force - by occupationagriculture: 3.9%

industry: 28.3%

services: 67.8% (2011)
agriculture: 5.5%

industry: 31.2%

services: 63.3% (2017 est.)
Unemployment rate9.88% (2019 est.)

10.63% (2018 est.)
7.64% (2019 est.)

8.25% (2018 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index35.9 (2017 est.)

27.3 (1995)
24.2 (2017 est.)

24.5 (2015)
Budgetrevenues: 903.3 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 948.1 billion (2017 est.)
revenues: 21.07 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 21.06 billion (2017 est.)
Industriestourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramicsferrous metallurgy and aluminum products, lead and zinc smelting; electronics (including military electronics), trucks, automobiles, electric power equipment, wood products, textiles, chemicals, machine tools
Industrial production growth rate2.1% (2017 est.)8.6% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productsmilk, grapes, wheat, maize, tomatoes, apples, olives, sugar beet, oranges, ricemilk, maize, wheat, grapes, barley, potatoes, poultry, apples, beef, pork
Exports$687.34 billion (2019 est.)

$678.788 billion (2018 est.)

$667.866 billion (2017 est.)
$49.872 billion (2019 est.)

$48.001 billion (2018 est.)

$45.096 billion (2017 est.)
Exports - commoditiespackaged medicines, cars and vehicle parts, refined petroleum, valves, trunks/cases, wine (2019)packaged medicines, cars and vehicle parts, refined petroleum, electrical lighting/signaling equipment, electricity (2019)
Exports - partnersGermany 12%, France 11%, United States 10%, United Kingdom 5%, Spain 5%, Switzerland 5% (2019)Germany 18%, Italy 11%, Croatia 8%, Austria 7%, France 5%, Switzerland 5% (2019)
Imports$647.058 billion (2019 est.)

$649.963 billion (2018 est.)

$631.54 billion (2017 est.)
$45.489 billion (2019 est.)

$43.637 billion (2018 est.)

$40.625 billion (2017 est.)
Imports - commoditiescrude petroleum, cars, packaged medicines, natural gas, refined petroleum (2019)packaged medicines, cars and vehicle parts, refined petroleum, delivery trucks, electricity (2019)
Imports - partnersGermany 16%, France 9%, China 7%, Spain 5%, Netherlands 5%, Belgium 5% (2019)Germany 14%, Italy 12%, Austria 8%, Switzerland 8%, China 7% (2019)
Debt - external$2,463,208,000,000 (2019 est.)

$2,533,153,000,000 (2018 est.)
$48.656 billion (2019 est.)

$50.004 billion (2018 est.)
Exchange rateseuros (EUR) per US dollar -

0.82771 (2020 est.)

0.90338 (2019 est.)

0.87789 (2018 est.)

0.885 (2014 est.)

0.7634 (2013 est.)
euros (EUR) per US dollar -

0.82771 (2020 est.)

0.90338 (2019 est.)

0.87789 (2018 est.)

0.885 (2014 est.)

0.7634 (2013 est.)
Fiscal yearcalendar yearcalendar year
Public debt131.8% of GDP (2017 est.)

132% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: Italy reports its data on public debt according to guidelines set out in the Maastricht Treaty; general government gross debt is defined in the Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year, in the following categories of government liabilities (as defined in ESA95): currency and deposits (AF.2), securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives (AF.3, excluding AF.34), and loans (AF.4); the general government sector comprises central, state, and local government and social security funds
73.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

78.6% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: defined by the EU's Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities: currency and deposits, securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives, and loans; general government sector comprises the central, state, local government, and social security funds
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$151.2 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$130.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$889.9 million (31 December 2017 est.)

$853 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance$59.517 billion (2019 est.)

$51.735 billion (2018 est.)
$3.05 billion (2019 est.)

$3.17 billion (2018 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$2,002,763,000,000 (2019 est.)$54.16 billion (2019 est.)
Credit ratingsFitch rating: BBB- (2020)

Moody's rating: Baa3 (2018)

Standard & Poors rating: BBB (2017)
Fitch rating: A (2019)

Moody's rating: A3 (2020)

Standard & Poors rating: AA- (2019)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 72.9 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 86.8 (2020)

Trading score: 100 (2020)

Enforcement score: 53.1 (2020)
Overall score: 76.5 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 93 (2020)

Trading score: 100 (2020)

Enforcement score: 54.8 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues46.6% (of GDP) (2017 est.)43.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-2.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)0% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24total: 29.2%

male: 27.8%

female: 31.2% (2019 est.)
total: 8.1%

male: 7.4%

female: 9.2% (2019 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 61% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 18.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 17.5% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: -0.2% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 31.4% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -28.3% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 52.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 18.2% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 18.4% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.1% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 82.3% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -72.6% (2017 est.)
Gross national saving21% of GDP (2019 est.)

21% of GDP (2018 est.)

20.6% of GDP (2017 est.)
26.5% of GDP (2019 est.)

27.2% of GDP (2018 est.)

26.5% of GDP (2017 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook