In 2023, Liguria exported goods worth 10.7 billion euros recording a slight increase (+0.8%) compared to the previous year, but in the first quarter of this year exports showed a decline of 14.7% compared to the same period of the previous year.
This is what the “Doing Export Report 2024” presented today by Sace, which explores the growth potential of Italian exports and the new routes on which companies must focus. 9 guidelines have been traced along which Italian companies must structure their growth strategies to shine – be “sparkling” – and be a company of the future.
At a national level, the Report highlights how exports are growing again and experiencing a great moment of transformation between new emerging risks and opportunities represented by artificial intelligence, new technologies, ESG transition, geopolitical risks and climate change. «Good news for exports: growth is back. Italy confirms itself among the top exporters in the world: 679 billion in 2025 and 4% growth in the next two years. And the opportunities come from the Gate markets where Sace is present and which are worth 80 billion euros today and could be worth 95 billion by 2027: Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Turkey, Serbia, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, India, China, Vietnam, Singapore – has explained Alessandro Terzulli Chief Economist of Sace – The future is not tomorrow, it is today and companies can develop their potential by exploiting artificial intelligence and new technologies also in the sectors of the future such as instrumental mechanics applied to efficiency, circularity applied to production cycles and low carbon technologies which are worth 40 billion today and could be worth 50 billion by 2025.”
Liguria
In 2023, Liguria exported goods worth 10.7 billion euros, recording a slight increase (+0.8%) compared to the previous year, compared to a national performance that remained unchanged. In the first quarter of this year (latest data available), however, the region’s exports were in sharp decline compared to the same period of the previous year (-14.7%), a slower trend than that of Italian sales (-2 ,8%). Genoa is the first province for exports, having exported around 6.5 billion euros, followed by Savona (1.9 billion), La Spezia (1.5 billion) and Imperia (700 million).
In terms of sector composition, last year i means of transport – the first export sector with an incidence of approximately 30% – confirmed the strong performance of 2022, thanks to a increase of 35.1%, also higher than the growth of the sector at national level (+11.7%); the dynamic was driven by sales of ships and boats from the province of Genoa. Significant sectors such as mechanical engineering (+6.9%) and food and beverages (+3.3%) also increased significantly.
On the contrary, they turned out exports of intermediate goods such as chemical products are contracting (-12%), refined (-35.5%) and metal products (-1.9%), after the large increases recorded in 2022 due to rising prices. Between January and March 2024, more or less contained declines were recorded across almost all sectors, with the notable exceptions of agricultural products (+18.4%) and food and beverages (+13.4%).
The United States is Liguria’s top export destination, welcoming over 30% of the total alone. Sales to the country showed a sustained pace (+19.1%), driven by means of transport. Following this, France and Germany – which together account for 15% of Ligurian exports – recorded a sharp contraction (-12.9% and -12.8% respectively). Exports to Spain increased slightly (+1.2%), the fourth destination market. In the first three months of 2024, almost all major geographies showed negative trendsespecially the United States (-65.8%) and France (-28.6%), with the exception of Gibraltar which saw a strong increase in sales of refined products.
Among the less attended markets, the closest geographical areas stand out for their good performances, such as Poland (+18% in 2023 and +3.4 Jan-Mar’24 vs. Jan-Mar’23), Romania (+16.3% and + 9.1%) and the Czech Republic (+13.8% and +1.6%) but also Saudi Arabia (+36.1% and +8.4%).
Sace in Liguria
Sace is committed alongside more than 600 companies, especially SMEs, in this area, supporting investments in sustainability, innovation and growth and supporting export and internationalization activities. Between 2023 and the first months of 2024, Sace supported projects by Ligurian companies for a total of approximately 1.5 billion euros.
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