Italy flag Italy: Economic and Political Overview

Foreign trade figures of Italy

Foreign Trade in Figures

Italy has an export-oriented economy, with trade making up 63% of its GDP in 2025 (World Bank). Italian exports are highly diversified: in 2025, the main items were medicaments (7.6% of the total), vaccines and other blood products (2.5%), motor cars and parts of motor vehicles (2.2% each), refined petroleum products (2.0%), and jewellery (1.8%), whereas imports were led by motor cars (5.6%), petroleum gas (4.2%), crude oil (3.8%), hormones (3.7%), and medicaments (3.2% - data Comtrade).

In 2025, Italy’s main export destinations were Germany (11.2%), the U.S. (10.8%), France (10.1%), Spain (5.9%), and Switzerland (5.5%), whereas imports chiefly came from Germany (14.4%), China (10.2%), France (8.0%), the Netherlands (6.6%), and the U.S. (6.0% - data Comtrade).

Since the sovereign debt crisis in 2010 and after several years of registering a trade deficit, Italy has changed direction and has recorded positive trade balances in recent years (with the exception of 2022 due to a rise in energy prices).  According to WTO data, in 2025, the country exported goods worth USD 726.5 billion (+7.9% year-on-year), while imports increased by 7.6%, totalling USD 668.7 billion. In the same year, Italy exported services for a total value of USD 168.5 billion, while its imports amounted to USD 177.1 billion (+9.3% and +10.2% year-on-year, respectively). The overall trade balance was estimated to be positive by 1.9% of GDP by the World Bank (2.1% one year earlier). Preliminary data from ISTAT show that, in 2025, exports rose by 3.3% in value compared to 2024 (+4.2% to EU markets and +2.4% to non-EU markets), while imports increased by 3.1% (+2.9% from EU countries and +3.4% from non-EU countries). The trade surplus widened to EUR 50.7 billion, from EUR 48.3 billion a year earlier.

 
Foreign Trade Values 20212022202320242025
Imports of Goods (million USD) 567,421694,305639,879621,388668,672
Exports of Goods (million USD) 615,635658,557676,724673,478726,499
Imports of Services (million USD) 115,782140,130150,300160,194176,449
Exports of Services (million USD) 105,218129,434148,413154,873169,204

Source: World Trade Organisation (WTO) ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Indicators 20212022202320242025
Foreign Trade (in % of GDP) 60.372.065.162.662.5
Trade Balance (million USD) 55,402-27,40139,97959,12458,613
Trade Balance (Including Service) (million USD) 44,797-38,43538,18952,55750,004
Imports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 16.012.9-1.9-1.03.6
Exports of Goods and Services (Annual % Change) 14.19.9-0.2-0.41.2
Imports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 29.136.931.830.330.3
Exports of Goods and Services (in % of GDP) 31.235.133.332.332.2

Source: World Bank ; Latest available data

Foreign Trade Forecasts 2026 (e)2027 (e)2028 (e)2029 (e)2030 (e)
Volume of exports of goods and services (Annual % change) 1.02.32.02.32.2
Volume of imports of goods and services (Annual % change) 1.61.41.82.12.0

Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook ; Latest available data

Note: (e) Estimated Data

 
International Economic Cooperation
Italy is a member of the following international economic organisations: IMF, European Union, ICC, European Economic Area, WTO, Central European Initiative (CEI), G-7, G-8, G-10, G-20, OECD, among others. For the full list of economic and other international organisations in which participates Italy click here. International organisation membership of Italy is also outlined here.
Free Trade Agreements
The complete and up-to-date list of Free Trade Agreements signed by Italy can be consulted here.
 

Main Partner Countries

Main Customers
(% of Exports)
2025
Germany 11.2%
United States 10.8%
France 10.1%
Spain 5.9%
Switzerland 5.5%
See More Countries 56.4%
Main Suppliers
(% of Imports)
2025
Germany 14.4%
China 10.2%
France 8.0%
Netherlands 6.6%
United States 6.0%
See More Countries 54.7%

Source: Comtrade, 2026. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

 
 

Main Products

726.8 bn USD of products exported in 2025
Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed...Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, put up in measured doses "incl. those in the form of transdermal administration" or in forms or packings for retail sale (excl. goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) 7.6%
Human blood; animal blood prepared for therapeutic...Human blood; animal blood prepared for therapeutic, prophylactic or diagnostic uses; antisera and other blood fractions and immunological products, whether or not modified or obtained by means of biotechnological processes; vaccines, toxins, cultures of micro-organisms (excl. yeasts) and similar products 2.5%
Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally...Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, incl. station wagons and racing cars (excl. motor vehicles of heading 8702) 2.2%
Parts and accessories for tractors, motor vehicles...Parts and accessories for tractors, motor vehicles for the transport of ten or more persons, motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, motor vehicles for the transport of goods and special purpose motor vehicles of heading 8701 to 8705, n.e.s. 2.2%
Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous...Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals (excl. crude); preparations containing >= 70% by weight of petroleum oils or of oils obtained from bituminous minerals, these oils being the basic constituents of the preparations, n.e.s.; waste oils containing mainly petroleum or bituminous minerals 2.0%
See More Products 83.5%
669.5 bn USD of products imported in 2025
Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally...Motor cars and other motor vehicles principally designed for the transport of persons, incl. station wagons and racing cars (excl. motor vehicles of heading 8702) 5.6%
Petroleum gas and other gaseous hydrocarbonsPetroleum gas and other gaseous hydrocarbons 4.2%
Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous...Petroleum oils and oils obtained from bituminous minerals, crude 3.8%
Hormones, prostaglandins, thromboxanes and...Hormones, prostaglandins, thromboxanes and leukotrienes, natural or reproduced by synthesis; derivatives and structural analogues thereof "incl. chain modified polypeptides", used primarily as hormones 3.7%
Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed...Medicaments consisting of mixed or unmixed products for therapeutic or prophylactic uses, put up in measured doses "incl. those in the form of transdermal administration" or in forms or packings for retail sale (excl. goods of heading 3002, 3005 or 3006) 3.2%
See More Products 79.5%

Source: Comtrade, 2026. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

 
 

To go further, check out our service Import-Export Flows.

 

Main Services

155.2 bn USD of services exported in 2024
37.81%
24.97%
10.71%
7.48%
6.18%
5.82%
3.44%
1.16%
0.97%
0.67%
0.62%
0.16%
162.8 bn USD of services imported in 2024
26.70%
21.94%
21.04%
10.71%
8.21%
4.68%
2.55%
1.32%
1.10%
0.85%
0.81%
0.10%

Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2026. Because of rounding, the sum of the percentages may be smaller/greater than 100%.

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Latest Update: October 2026