Italy, a vote for the future – The countdown started for the Italian elections and the foreign press was even more interested and concerned with possible scenarios for what will come afterwards. Various papers wrote guides for the 2013 elections, explaining the detailed rules and behind the scenes aspects of Italian politics. They also underlined the importance of these elections for ‘Europe (from Feb. 18 to 22 in the New York Times – Italy Votes on Its Future; El Pais – Las claves de las elecciones italianas; Wall Street Journal – Plastered, Rome Is Ready for the Elections;Wall Street Journal – Italy Vote Nears, Spurring Noise and a Tinge of Panic; Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung – Mondo aperto; Sueddeutsche Zeitung – Italiens wichtigste Wahl). The risk that, with the growth of protest movements such as that of Bebe Grillo, the elections will have a chaotic outcome drew comments and analysis from the foreign press (Feb. 21 and 22 in the Financial Times – Italy risks voting for more instability; The Economist – When cynics rule; New York Times – The Rise of a Protest Movement Shows the Depth of Italy’s Disillusionment). The papers also ran articles on the challenges facing the new government, in particularregarding the economy. (Bloomberg Businessweek, Feb. 18 – A Look at the Italian Election: Who Can Save Italy?; Time, Feb. 22 – Impossible Italy*; ). There was also an article in Bloomberg Businessweek on Italy’s peculiar economic situation, explaining that, compared to other countries, Italy’s traditional social structures have managed to create a buffer against the crisis (Feb. 12 – Italian traditions provide buffers to the crisis).
Luxury goods take off – Italy’s upcoming elections did not completely obscure interest in the topics normally covered by foreign correspondents: the performance of luxury brands that are still representatives of the upward trends of Made in Italy products in international markets. Thanks to new stores it has opened, Prada in particular has increased sales by almost 30% and well deserves the attention it received from various papers (Feb. 19 and 20 in the Financial Times – Prada sales up 29 per cent in a year; Wall Street Journal – New Stores Boost Prada Sales *; Le Figaro – Prada : hausse de 29 % du chiffre d’affaires annuel; Les Echos – Prada voit ses ventes bondir de 29 %). However, the spotlight also shone on another celebrity of Italian industry: Ferrari. The “Prancing Horse” racecar manufacturer has shown record sales world wide, starting with China, as explained by China Daily (Feb. 21 – Ferrari enjoys record year, boosted by China business), and Germany, as reported by the Handelsblatt (Feb. 18 – Nur Italiener kaufen keine Ferraris mehr)
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