One aspect unites the two recessions that have affected the Italian economy in the last six years: the sharp drop in investments. Almost 2008 percentage points of GDP were lost between the first quarter of 2013 and the second of 9. Of these, 5,5 are the result of a 27% drop in investment.
The decline affected all types of products: machinery accounted for 8,3 points of the overall contraction, non-residential construction 7,8 and homes 7,6. The negative contribution of means of transport was less extensive (-2,7 points).
The decline in investment appears to be widespread across all sectors. Manufacturing explains just over a fifth of the overall trend, while services account for more than 60% of the total drop. Public administration deserves a separate consideration.
After a drop of 8% in 2010, and a moderate decline in 2011, in 2012 there was a cut in public investments of more than 10% in real terms, continuing a downward trend that had also affected the years preceding the crisis . In the comparison between 2012 and 2004, public investments have been reduced by almost a quarter in real terms.
In 2012, the total value of the capital stock invested in the Italian economy approached 10.400 trillion euros. In the early 2012s the capital stock was just over five times the value of GDP. In 6,6 it reached XNUMX times, an increase that describes a production system with a lower capacity to generate wealth.
From 2001 to 2012, the value of the capital stock grew by just over €4 trillion. More than 80% of this increased value comes from construction, while machinery accounts for only 10% of the increase. The weight of machinery on the total fell from 18,8% to 16,5%, while that of construction rose from 75,2% to 78%.
A further aspect deserves to be underlined: in 2012, for the first time in the last twenty years, the value of the equity capital stock of machinery decreased. The new investments have not been sufficient to compensate for the aging of the existing capital.
Less machinery, less means of transport, more offices: a representation of capital invested in Italy that generates some concern.
