“Italy, like Europe, needs a new and strong industrial policy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation cannot fail to be a protagonist of this season”. Saying as much, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Antonio Tajani, underlined last December, in Milan, the relationship between businesses and diplomacy, between a manufacturing industry that wants to strengthen its presence at an international level and the tools to support the internationalization of companies offered by the Foreign Ministry.
While opening the first day of the National Conference on Export and Internationalization of Businesses, on December 18, Minister Tajani explained that the event was deliberately linked to another meeting, namely the States General of Diplomacy 2024, the event that every year brings together in Rome the Italian Ambassadors in the world.
A synergy that has therefore enabled the Foreign Ministry – represented by the political leadership and the Italian Heads of Mission abroad – and businesses to be brought together, so that “every entrepreneur sees his/her counterpart’s face, in every part of the world, whom he/she can ask for help, for advice, for paving the way to better carry out his/her business activities”, Minister Tajani explained.
On the day dedicated to export and the internationalization of businesses, the meetings – held in the Aula Magna of Bocconi University – demonstrated the importance attached to the business-diplomacy link, by also involving the Italian Heads of Mission abroad, who – on the sidelines of the event – had over 700 direct meetings with representatives of the private sector. The formula was particularly appreciated by companies, so much so that further meetings – over 1,800 already planned – were organized for the following days, including in virtual mode.
The discussion on existing and possible synergies between companies and institutions for the growth of the national economic system was concluded the following day, December 19, again in Milan, with a first morning meeting at the Italian Stock Exchange to discuss the contribution of finance (Finance and Diplomacy at the Service of the Growth of the Italian System) and a subsequent event at the Triennale dedicated to the “Dialogues on Cultural Diplomacy”.
Minister Tajani said: “I strongly wanted this year’s Conference to be held in Milan – one of the most important economic hubs in the country – to strengthen the direct dialogue between our diplomatic network and representatives of companies, trade associations and public export support agencies. We want to support our companies in their internationalization process by helping them operate in a constantly changing geopolitical context in which it is essential that the Italian System faces the great challenges of the global economy in a coordinated manner”. In this regard, on the occasion of the Conference, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Trade Agency (ITA), the Italian Stock Exchange and the company Elite signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote the internationalization of Italian companies through access to the capital market, extending the skills of Italian diplomacy to financial investment.
The Foreign Ministry and ITA announced the launch of an important project, also focused on the internationalization of companies, with the involvement of the diplomatic-consular network. During the Conference, the launch of “OpportunItalia: where Italian Excellence generates Growth” was announced, a program that aims to generate hundreds of thousands of new commercial contacts for the Italian business world in more than 20 priority markets.
The great results achieved and the great potential that the Italian industrial fabric still has in store were highlighted several times in the speeches delivered during the Export Day. Minister Tajani himself, who also outlined a framework of economic missions in emerging markets in Asia, the Gulf and Latin America to be carried out during 2025, recalled that Italy is the second largest manufacturer in Europe and the fifth largest commercial power in the world. He also recalled that it is necessary to strengthen the competitiveness of the production system through measures such as the reduction of energy costs, incentives for innovation, streamlining of bureaucracy, and tax relief in favour of SMEs, which are also “ambassadors” of Italian know how and essential drivers of national exports.
The day therefore saw the actors of the Italian System play a leading role, with the participation of trade associations from the production world, prominent entrepreneurs, agencies dedicated to exports, and institutional representatives.
After the initial greetings and the introductory speech by Minister Tajani, the President of Confindustria, Emanuele Orsini, and the President of the Italian banking Association (ABI), Antonio Patuelli, took the floor, followed by speeches on the internationalization strategies by entrepreneurs and trade associations and by some Ambassadors accredited to countries with markets of strategic interest. In the afternoon, the works continued with some thematic sessions. The topics of Innovation and Made in Italy were at the centre of the discussions, with an in-depth analysis of the positive effects of high-tech sectors on exports, and on the positioning on global markets for Italian companies operating in highly-innovative sectors – areas that are probably scarcely known but rich in excellence – such as the space sector, on which ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti was asked to provide her perspective. A second session focused on Infrastructure and Energy, with discussions also relating to the opportunities stemming from the participation in large projects, both in mature and emerging markets, and to the possibilities offered by the energy transition.
A subsequent work session was dedicated to Sport, also considering the increasingly important role played by sports diplomacy in promoting the Italian System and the sport world as an extraordinary engine not only for fostering social and cultural values, but also for strengthening our economy on international markets. Due to their ability to attract global attention, international sporting events provide a natural stage to promote Made in Italy and to build new commercial relations at a global level.
“Because everything – Minister Tajani concluded – must be aimed at increasing Italy’s presence”.
Finance meets Diplomacy: a dialogue platform at Palazzo Mezzanotte to support Italian companies in the world
Italy intends to strengthen its presence on foreign markets and the diplomacy-finance link, with the use of innovative tools, can provide fundamental support. This approach was at the centre of the conference “Finance and Diplomacy at the Service of Growth of the Italian System: Message to be conveyed abroad to promote the Italian Financial Market”, organized last December in Milan, at Palazzo Mezzanotte, by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), in collaboration with the Italian Stock Exchange.
The event was part of the program of the 17th Conference of Italian Ambassadors which, after starting in mid-December in Rome at the Foreign Ministry, continued in Milan to turn the spotlight on new possibilities for collaboration between diplomacy, the business world (on December 18 at Bocconi University) and the financial world (on December 19 at the Italian Stock Exchange), and ended at the Triennale, on the afternoon of 19 December, with the future prospects for cultural diplomacy.
In all meetings, great prominence was given to the essential contribution of the diplomatic-consular network, as part of a broader vision to promote the Italian System at an international level.
““Ambassadors as custodians of our image and our values”, actors in “a daily work that contributes to peace, cooperation and international development”. Fabrizio Testa, CEO of Borsa Italiana, said as much at the opening of the meeting, referring to Italy’s representatives abroad and emphasizing the importance of diplomacy’s work for the expansion of businesses beyond national borders. As Testa recalled, a concrete step in this direction was the Memorandum of Understanding signed by Foreign Ministry, ITA, the Italian Stock Exchange and the company Elite on the occasion of the Export Day, which aims to enhance the internationalization of companies through access to the capital market. As explained by Testa, Borsa Italiana is already operating in an international dimension thanks to its entry in 2021 into the Euronext group, which has greatly benefited from the acquisition of innovative tools brought by Italy. At the same time, work is being done to bring back to the Milan listings entrepreneurial realities that had chosen other Stock Exchanges, and Testa mentioned the examples of Snam, A2A and Iccrea. This is also a path aimed at strengthening the promotion of the Country System abroad.
As emerged during the works, the country is taking steps forward to enhance its competitiveness and to strengthen its ability to attract investment. Barbara Lunghi, Head of Primary Equity Markets of Borsa Italiana, said: “The listing of Italian companies on the Stock Exchange, on the capital market, is still an important challenge. It is still a challenge to encourage companies to use the capital market”, and added that “Italian listed companies already attract many international investors, for a total of 9,000 funds and over 2,000 investment firms, and investors come from over 50 countries”.
The Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Maria Tripodi, also focused on the need to encourage the flow of foreign capital into Italy. She underlined the government’s commitment in this regard, recalling the Memorandum of Understanding, signed in March 2024 by Minister Tajani and the Minister of Business and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, with the Heads of ITA and Invitalia, which gave momentum to the strengthening of initiatives aimed at attracting foreign investors, ranging from identification to first contacts with foreign investors. As stated by Undersecretary Tripodi, “Finance and Growth Diplomacy are natural allies.”
As part of an in-depth analysis of the attraction ability, Stefano Firpo, General Manager of Assonime, illustrated Italian tax instruments, such as Reshoring incentives, tax credits or incentives for new residents, which have brought around 2,000 professionals to Milan alone, and Valerio De Molli, CEO of The European House Ambrosetti (TEHA), presented the ninth edition of the Global Attractiveness Index, which provides a measure of Italy’s growing competitiveness.
Anna Gervasoni, General Manager of AIFI, highlighted that private equity, venture capital and private debt are also an important source of financing for Italian companies.
The event, in its various work sessions, from the presentations in the first part of the morning to the subsequent debate, provided the Ambassadors present with detailed financial information useful in promoting the Italian capital market abroad.
EURONEXT
Euronext is Europe’s leading Stock Exchange, connecting European economies to global capital markets to step up innovation and sustainable growth. It operates regulated exchanges in Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway and Portugal. With around 1,930 listed issuers and around €6.8 trillion in market capitalisation as of end-March 2023, it has an unrivalled blue-chip franchise comprising 25 stocks in the Euro Stoxx 50 Index. Euronext operates regulated and transparent equity and derivatives markets, and it is one of Europe’s leading fixed income electronic trading markets and the world’s largest bond and fund listing centre. In addition to its main regulated market, it also operates a number of junior markets, streamlining and simplifying access to listing for SMEs.
