By dint of barking at the moon it happens that you end up not seeing it anymore because your attention is entirely concentrated on the finger that rises threateningly to point at it and rant without realizing that in this way the moon disappears from your eyes. This is what is happening to the internationalization of Italian companies. It must be recognized that, in times of global crisis, the anti-historical nationalist and protectionist protest that accompanies every time the arrival of foreign investors and the purchase of any Italian company, even non-strategic, has recently lost a few strings to its bow. But who does not remember the indignation that arose against the sale of Indesit to the Americans only a few weeks ago?
After the repeated refusals of the French on Alitalia (but sooner or later it will be necessary to point out to the public ridicule all the guilty champions of the absurd Italian character of our major airline) for the arrival of the Arabs of Etihad the hunt for the foreigner is instead an empty spring. For a very simple reason, even if it is not yet clear to all air transport trade unionists (but does scrapping never count for them?): without the investments of the Arabs, Alitalia can do and say what it wants but it inevitably fails because it is already on the verge of bankruptcy.
It is not surprising that those who experience internationalization with the nightmare of the perennial siege do not see the reality that passes before their eyes, but the facts are facts and the figures speak for themselves. Italian jewels are coveted by many foreign investors but it's not that Italians always play defense. They are also often excellent hunters. “Milano Finanza” did some calculations on Saturday and the result is easy to tell: in the first six months of 2014, Italian companies made acquisitions abroad for a total of 3,5 billion. But the breakthrough of the Italians across the border has arrived in recent days with the maxi-acquisition of Gtech in Las Vegas where the company of the Dragos and the Borolis announced the purchase of International Game Technologies for the beauty of 4,7 billion.
More than the other Italian companies had spent on shopping abroad in the first part of the year and that makes Gtech the world leader in games. Therefore, on balance, since the beginning of 2014 the acquisitions of Italian companies abroad amount to over 8 billion. In this sum there is the coup of Gtech, as has been said, but there is also the mother of all acquisitions abroad and that is the complete purchase of Chrysler by Sergio Marchionne's Fiat which, after having set it last year, it finalized and completed the transaction at the beginning of 2014 by purchasing 41% of the Detroit automaker from the Veba fund for 2,7 billion.
Among the Italian acquisitions abroad in 2014 there is above all the sign of the dynamism of the medium-sized enterprises of the so-called Fourth Capitalism, which have long understood that internationalisation, innovation and quality are the pillars of the new competitive paradigm, which finds its standard bearers in companies such as Brembo, Prysmian, Amplifon, Interpump, Engineering, Datalogic, Campari and many other expressions of true Made in Italy.
From a financial point of view, also in this part of 2014, the completion of the purchase of the remaining 4% of Generali Deutschland by Mario Greco's Leone for a value of 228 million euros, the third largest foreign acquisition of the year after those of Gtech, should be noted and of Fiat. Finally, there are the challenges of the immediate future, from those still reserved to those that already dominate the financial scene such as the counter tender offer launched by Andrea Bonomi's private equity fund on the legendary but somewhat decayed Club Med which is unleashing the resurgence nationalists of the transalpine management led by Henry Giscard and which promises sparks.
