The statistical analysis performed by Assocomaplast (Italian trade association, part of CONFINDUSTRIA, representing over 160 companies) on foreign trade data provided by ISTAT regarding the first six months of this year , reveals – in comparison to January-June 2014 – a markedly positive performance for Italy's exports and imports of plastics and rubber machinery, equipment and moulds. The growth recorded since the first months of 2014 has continued this year and actually has increased: by the end of June 2015, the rise in purchases from abroad approached 17%. This provides further reassurance

Assocomaplast (the Italian trade association belonging to CONFINDUSTRIA, which groups to-gether over 160 makers of machinery, moulds and equipment for plastics and rubber) has completed the year 2014 balance sheet for the sector, incorporating ISTAT foreign trade data. Progress in exports maintained a constant pace to the end of the year, sustaining Italian machinery manufacturers in a period where the domestic market showed only timid signs of recovery in the very recent months. In effect, although there was a noticeable increase in purchases from abroad – on the order of eight percentage (8%

December 18th, 20914 (Milan, Italy): Assocomaplast (the Italian trade association, belonging to CONFINDUSTRIA, which groups to-gether some 170 machinery manufacturers) has compared ISTAT foreign trade data for January-September of the current year with data for the same period in 2013 and confirms further growth in both imports and exports. Exports rose by over 4% while purchases from abroad grew by over 7%. This has also led to a consolidation (+3%) of an already strong balance of trade. However, we must underscore that the positive trend in exports, traditional driver for Italian

For the third quarter of 2014, orders for Italian textile machinery manufacturers grew compared to the previous quarter. Economic data from industry surveys conducted by ACIMIT, representing the textile machinery sector, indicate a 4% increase. The value of the orders index for the period from July to September came in at 89.8 points (basis 2010=100). However, this rise in orders is limited to foreign markets, where for the period taken into consideration an increase of 9% was reported, and the index measured a value of 99.4 points. On the other hand, the domestic market remains stagnant

THE BIOTECH SECTOR IN ITALY: A GROWING AND PROMISING REALITY Vigorous growth and an excellent innovation capacity. These are the principal characteristics of the Italian biotech sector. In view of the tender age of this industry such characteristics are, in some respects, very surprising. Thanks to them, Italy has managed to meet a challenge that would have been unthinkable a few years ago: to finally appear on the radar screens of the major biopharmaceutical and biotechnological companies and venture capital operators. There are tangible facts behind this phenomenon: new enterprises emerging

Assocomaplast (the Italian trade association belonging to CONFINDUSTRIA, which groups together some 165 makers of machinery, molds and equipment for plastics and rubber) has issued its report on the sector's performance in 2012 – based also on the Italian National Institute of Statistics - ISTAT foreign trade statistics. Even more than in the past – and more markedly than in other Italian mechanical equipment sectors – production output was driven by exports, with an upward trend that, despite levelling off over the year, enabled Italian equipment manufacturers offset extremely weak domestic

Orders of Italian textile machinery are on the rise for both the domestic and foreign markets. ACIMIT's President Sandro Salmoiraghi stated "What's needed now is to boost investments in capital goods and work together in foreign markets." Based on an industry study conducted by ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, during the fourth quarter of 2012, the orders index for textile machinery rose by 22% compared to the previous quarter, for an absolute value of 130.4 points. Even more significant was the increase with respect to the same period the previous year (+46%

As global demand increases for Italian Machine Tools, the first ten months of 2012 showed a 14.4% export increase, compared to the same period in 2011 reported UCIMU-SISTEMI PER PRODURRE, Italy's national association for machinery manufacturers in the metalworking sector. Italy's National Institute for Statistics, ISTAT (Istituto Nazionale di Statistica) released that industry had a 2,700 million Euro growth from last year at this time, and UCIMU president Luigi Galdabini reports it is due to the positive performances of Italian manufacturers in foreign markets. China led the export market for

According to the Italy's Farm Machinery Manufacturers Association, FEDERUNACOMA, Italian farm machinery sales, including machine components, increased 4% this year to approximately $10 billion. To great extent, the increased sales can be attributed to stronger demand for farm machinery in European markets, particularly since the domestic market has experienced a relatively flat growth. For 2012 and 2013, Italian production of farm machinery should benefit from strong demand in the United States, as well as improving economic conditions in Eastern European and other emerging markets. In 2012

Italy's association for textile machinery, ACIMIT, reported textile machinery orders for the third quarter of 2012 grew by eight percent (8%) over the previous quarter, for an absolute value of 108.2 points (2005=100). A comparison with the same period in 2011 showed an even greater increase (+53%), a positive result which is due solely to orders originating from foreign markets, whereas the situation in Italy highlighted a decidedly opposite and negative trend. In fact, orders from foreign markets rose 11% compared to the period from April to June 2012, for an absolute value of 123.3 points