Economic Analysis Of Italy

Submitted By nshelto1
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Nikki Shelton
Economic Analysis

Introduction Italy has a diverse industrial economy. The economy is driven by the manufacture of high-quality consumer goods produced by small and medium-sized enterprises. Many of the businesses are family owned. Italy also has a large underground economy that accounts for approximately 17% of the GDP. Italy has the third-largest economy in European country’s and eighth in the world. However, the public debt is remarkably high and has rendered it vulnerable to scrutiny by financial markets.
Population
Italy’s population in total surpasses 60 million, 10 million of that is over the age of 65. It is the fifth largest populated European country. According to the World Bank, the growth rate as of 2011 was measured at .40. The growth rate is expected to decline over the next 35 years due to the death rate exceeding the birth rate. Currently the birth rate is 1.3 child per Italy’s women. Italy’s gender ratio is quite even with 1.07 boys being born to every girl. The population density is an estimate of 200 people per square kilometer. The highest density is in Northern Italy, which contains almost half the population. 68.4% of the total population is urbanized. The capital of Italy, Rome, has the highest urban population. Milan and Naples are second and third with the highest populated areas. The ages of 25-54 have the highest age structure of Italy accounting for 43% of the total population. Less than 10% of the population contains the ages 15-24.

Economic Statistics and Activity
Gross National Product The gross domestic product (GDP) measures the national income and output of a country’s economy. As of 2013 Italy has a 2.068 trillion GDP. This is 8% lower than the GDP in 2007. Public debt has increased steadily over the years resulting in 133% of the GDP. The real growth rare of the GDP is a measure of the rate of change that a nation’s gross domestic product experiences from one year to another. The real growth rate for Italy’s economy is -1.8% as of 2013. This takes in account the effect that inflation has on the economy. This is a more accurate look at the economy because it is not distorted by inflation or deflation.
Personal Income Per Capita The personal income per capita is calculated by dividing the GDP by the midyear population. The personal income per capita in Italy as of 2013 is $29,600 in US dollars. According to data collected in 2011 and 2012, the income pre capita is decreasing for Italians.
Average Family Income The average income for an Italian family is estimated to be $42,903 in US dollars. The household income is the amount of money that a household earns after taxes. It represents the money available to buy goods or services.
Distribution of Wealth There is a considerable large gap between the richest and poorest people of Italy. The top 20% of the population earn almost six times as much as the bottom 20%.
Minerals and Resources Italy has a variety of many natural resources such as: coal, zinc, potash, marble, barite, pumice, asbestos, fluorspar, mercury, feldspar, pyrite, natural gas, and crude oil reserves. The government has complete control of the mineral industry in Italy. The country is a main producer of industrial minerals for global consumption Copper, iron and steel, lead, zinc are essentials for Italy to maintain the country’s manufacturing industry. The most important contributors to Italy’s revenue is iron and steel. Cement is highly produced in Italy making it the 13th largest producer in the world. Italy does not produced high levels of fossil fuels. Therefore, the country relies on imports of fuel.
Surface Transportation Italy provides many ways of transportation. One of the most efficient ways to travel the country is by train. It is an easy and inexpensive way of traveling to all the popular cities in Italy. In many smaller towns railroad travel may not be available. Taking a bus is an option. However, there is not a national