Yesterday Istat confirmed the GDP growth figure for the South in 2023 anticipated last week by Svimez: +1.3%. An almost Korean growth, that of our South and the Islands (+1.4% increase in South Korea’s GDP last year), which is higher not only than the Italian national average (+0.9%) but also to that of the European Union (+0.5%). The same goes for employment: in the South it increased by 2.5% last year, much more than the national one (+1.8%) and the EU (+1.2%).
The preliminary estimates on the territorial economic performance of Istat essentially confirm the fresh data from Svimez, with very small differences only for the North East and Central Italy: in fact, the GDP of the South advanced in 2023 more than that of North West (confirmed by both institutions at +1%), that of the North East (+0.8% Istat; +0.9% Svimez) and that of the Center (+0.5% Istat; Svimez +0.4%.
Definitely, GDP growth in the South last year was approximately double that estimated by the Bank of Italy in the Reports on the economy of the Italian regions presented just a few days ago. A fact that says it all about how the South has surprised all observers, even the most authoritative. And credit must be given to this newspaper and its director for having been the first to perceive and announce the change in speed of the economy of our southern regions when widespread skepticism about their ability to keep pace with the rest of the country in the recovery was still prevalent post Covid.
The South, however, has been able to do even more, especially with its two economically strongest regions, Campania and Pugliawhich, as we highlighted a few days ago, in the four-year period 2020-2023 consolidated a growth in their respective regional GDPs of 4.9% and 6.1% compared to the pre-pandemic levels of 2019.
A growth, that of Southern Italy, which can be expressed in three words: trust, attractiveness of private investments, concreteness and efficiency of public investments. It is enough to read the key news on the front page of yesterday’s “Il Sole 24 Ore” to have a clear perception of the exceptionally positive climate currently experienced by the Italian economy and in particular by that of the South.
First news: the CEO of Goldman Sachs, one of the most important investment banks in the world, says that he has confidence in Italy and that in Europe any risks of instability could possibly come from France (on whose disastrous public accounts we have learned more times discussed in our latest articles). Second news: STM, the large Italian-French semiconductor multinational, invests 5 billion in Catania, in addition to the 730 million allocated for the adjacent site under construction. Third news: within this week the Italian Government will send to Brussels the request for accreditation of the sixth installment of the PNRR: 8.5 billion for 37 objectives, including the start of infrastructure works in the single SEZ of the South.
Istat explains that Construction confirmed itself in 2023 as the driving sector of the economy of the South, recording a growth in added value of 4.6% in the area. The sectors of Financial, real estate and professional services (+3.3%), Commerce, public businesses, transport and telecommunications (+1.6%) and Other services (+0.0%) also contributed to the positive economic performance of the South. 9%). It should also be noted that in the South, employment in the industry sector in the strict sense, i.e. industry excluding construction, recorded a change of 3.3%, clearly higher than the national average growth (1.7%), a that of the North West (+0.6%), the North East (+2.2%) and the Center (+1.6%).
The green light from the EU Commission to the extension to 31 December 2024 is very positive for employment Southern decontribution, the measure expiring at the end of the month which encourages, through a contribution exemption, employee employment relationships for companies based in Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Puglia, Sardinia and Sicily. Another step to definitively escape from the logic of welfare, to create jobs instead of subsidies and to consolidate the super growth of the South.
