Le Italian companies in Russia are 130, have a total of 60 plants and produce a turnover that exceeds 13 billion euros a year. The bill is of Unimpresa and refers to all companies active in the industrial, service and agri-food sectors. Second a wider list by InfoMercatEseri, however, the Italian companies in Russia are about 160. But if we widen our gaze to include all the Italian companies that have commercial relations with Russia, then the count doubles, reaching 300.
Regardless of the calculation criteria, the meaning is clear: the war between Russia and Ukraine puts the Italian economy at risk on the commercial front as well as on the energy one. And, overall, there is enough not only to cancel the post-Covid recovery expected for 2022, but also to see the specter of a new recession on the horizon.
Italian companies in Russia affected by the sanctions
To damage Italian companies in Russia are primarily the sanctions adopted by the European Union against Moscow (followed by the retaliation decided by the Kremlin). The interruption of trade flows leads to the termination of contracts and the loss of orders, while the exclusion of Russia from Swift - the platform that connects thousands of banks around the world, allowing international payments at low cost - often decisively hinders sales from Russia to countries that do not apply the sanctions. All this causes significant losses in turnover for Italian companies in Russia, which will also damage our country on several fronts: reduction of supplies, increase of Costs (even for consumption), loss of jobs.
Unimpresa's appeal for Italian companies in Russia
The Italian companies affected by the sanctions against Russia "must be protected by Italian diplomacy and helped financially", write the top management of Unimpresa, who are also asking the government to apply sanctions on the US model: "The United States, unlike the Italy – continues the note – have authorized their companies present in Russia to operate commercially”.
Italy-Russia: a commercial relationship that has been growing for decades
What the war and the sanctions are putting into crisis is a commercial fabric that has become increasingly dense in recent decades. “Since the end of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation and the post-Soviet space have been the subject of growing investments by Italian and European companies – explains the Institute for International Political Studies (Inspi) – In particular, the emergence of a middle class in recent years and the growth of relative economic well-being in Russian society have meant that Russian consumers are particularly attracted by the quality of Made in Italy products”.
Trade between Italy and Russia in 2021
According to the Institute for Foreign Trade (ICE), which processes Istat data, trade between Russia and Italy stopped just below i 20 billion euros in the first 11 months of 2021. On this sum, Italian exports account for about 7 billion euros, while imports from Moscow reach 12,6 billion (80% related to gas and raw materials). Furthermore, before the war, the flow trend was in full post-Covid recovery. In the first six months of 2021, the export of Italian products to Russia had jumped by 13,3% on an annual basis, reaching over 3,6 billion. In the same period, Italian imports from Russia had soared by 35,7%, to about 3,9 billion. In any case, Russia is alone in 14th place in the ranking of Italian commercial partners, after Turkey and ahead of Romania.
