Special report | Structural faults

Italy’s protected sectors need exposure to more competition

Their approach to management and the labour market need a shake-up, too

2H79MD8 Rome, Italy. 21 November 2021. A pile of rubbish at a collection point remains uncollected in a Rome northern suburb . Rome has been been plagued by a garbage crisis that has lasted for months due to a strike by binmen and the closure of a major landfill site that has caused anger and raised health concerns amongst residents. Credit: amer ghazzal/Alamy Live News
In need of a spring cleanImage: Alamy

The macroeconomic outlook for Italy is cloudy. But it is microeconomic factors such as labour- and product-market regulation, protected incumbents and a broader lack of social trust that do most to discourage Italian firms from investing and foreign investors from coming in.

This article appeared in the Special report section of the print edition under the headline “Structural faults”

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From the December 10th 2022 edition

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