The crisis that has hit the Euro Area has led, in many European countries, to the adoption of austerity policies that have secured public finances, but at the price of weakening domestic demand and intra-European trade. According to the latest forecasts by the EU Commission, we should see an improvement in the European economy starting from the second half of 2013, leading to an increase in GDP of 0,4%, against -0,3% last year. But, due to the weak economic activity, during 2013 unemployment will reach a peak of 10,9% in the EU and 11,8% in the Euro Area, before declining slightly from next year. As regards inflation, forecasts speak of a drop to 2% in the EU and 1,8% in the Eurozone. In Italy, after the flexion by 2,1% in 2012, mainly attributable to the negative dynamics of internal demand, defined by consumption and gross fixed investments, GDP growth will still be negative this year, to then recover in 2014 (+0,6%).
In this scenario, the long-term trend shows how more advanced and larger emerging markets are on track to outpace older industrialized economies in absolute value of manufacturing output and GDP growth. To defend the competitiveness of our companies, therefore, it becomes essential to direct Made in Italy towards the most innovative sectors of the economic system. Proof of this is the fact that Italy today remains one of only five G-20 countries active in foreign trade in manufactured goods, able to boast a structural surplus in foreign trade.
At this point, one looms clear distinction between companies operating on international markets and those linked to the internal market, where the different trends foreshadow a gap that will widen over the next few years. The publication of the "Small Business Act" report by the General Directorate for SMEs and Cooperative Entities fits into this context, with the aim of indicating the initiatives in support of micro and SMEs adopted in Italy in 2012, dedicating an entire chapter (edited by the Productive Activities Commission of the Conference of Regions and Autonomous Provinces) to illustrate the support strategies for micro and SMEs implemented by the individual Regions.
We are, in fact, faced with a crucial choice such as the need to redesign the geography of businesses, resorting to strategies that can no longer be those of a past unable to compete with the pace of the times. It is necessary to review the productive fabric in the light of the opportunities offered by business chains and networksthrough the creation of a industrial model based on a business network capable of implementing an increasingly complex corporate governance model. And this appears to be all the more decisive for an effective growth and development policy, with the aim of strengthen the international position of Italian companies and their innovative capacity, without forgetting the support of an efficient credit system and advanced services.
