Economy – Economic reporting in the international press is shining the spotlight on the major industrial and financial groups, with Bloomberg recounting the boost Enel aims to give its electric mobility business (Bloomberg, July 25 – Enel to Boost Its Electric Mobility Business 20-Fold: Corriere*) and Boersen Zeitung stressing the growing profits of Intesa Sanpaolo, exceeding expectations (August 4 – Intesa Sanpaolo hebt Gewinnprognose an*).
In the meantime, Reuters and Les Echos discuss the future of the Milan bourse, with Euronext committed to growing Borsa Italiana (Reuters, August 13 – Euronext says committed to growing Milan bourse’s home business) and the post-Brexit redeployment of investment banks employees, which, according to the French economic daily, will also benefit Milan (August 18 – Brexit : Paris, Francfort et Milan accueillent les banquiers millionnaires de la City*). Coverage is also devoted to the growth of EssilorLuxottica, fostered by a sales rebound (Reuters, July 30 – EssilorLuxottica raises full-year guidance as sales rebound), and to the higher valuation of Cerved by Ion, the fintech group led by Andrea Pignataro, which raised the offer to € 2.54 billion (Financial Times, August 27 – Andrea Pignataro’s Ion raises offer for Italy’s Cerved*).
The German financial daily Boersen Zeitung focuses on the foreign growth of Eataly, as a “standard-bearer” in the world of Italian production (August 20 – Das Made in Italy in die Welt tragen*), and is off to discover Naples, not just a tourist city, but a technological and industrial centre as well (September 1 –Neapel ist (auch) ein Hightech-Zentrum*).
Culture and tourism – Cultural reports are quite numerous, with particular attention to the figurative arts. The Wall Street Journal reviews the exhibition that Los Angeles has dedicated to Paolo Veneziano and to 14th-century Venice (September 4 – Paolo Veneziano: Art & Devotion in 14th-Century Venice Review: Worshiping at the Altar of Beauty*) and discusses the new show, “Botticelli: Artist and Designer, that Musée Jacquemart-André has devoted to the Renaissance artist (September 3 – Botticelli the Businessman*).
And while The Guardian recounts the new archaeological discoveries and restoration work in Pompeii (August 21 – Levelling up Pompeii: grave shows how a former slave went far; August 9 – Pompeiis fast food joint unearthed in 2019 opens to public), other news outlets focus on Venice and on the marriage of tourism, culture, luxury, and fine food in the city on the Lagoon: El País recommends the best itineraries proposed by art director Monica Boromello (August 7 – Mucho arte y tramezzini en Venecia) and by Didier Guillon, founder of Valmont (August 30 – La Venecia de Didier Guillon); meanwhile, The New York Times recounts how the city’s jewellers are trying to bounce back after the pandemic (August 25 – In Venice, Jewelers Try to Revive Their Businesses*), and Financial Times recommends a luxury home beside the Ponte degli Scalzi (August 20 – Hot property: four homes for sale near canals*).
While Bloomberg remains in the city to cover the start of the Film Festival with particular attention to the new Paolo Sorrentino film (August 31 – Sorrentino’s ‘The Hand of God’ Is a Deeply Personal Tale of Loss, Hope*), cinema is also featured in The New York Times and die Zeit with a visit to Museo Fellini in Rimini, the museum dedicated to “one of the most famed directors” (August 31 – Sorrentino’s ‘The Hand of God’ Is a Deeply Personal Tale of Loss, Hope*; September 1 – Federicos Genspenster).
Financial Times also notes the opening of a new international centre for musicians in Cremona, the “city of violins” (August 14 – Stauffer Center for Strings, Cremona violin revival*). And in literature, while Franfurter Allgemeine Zeitung concentrates on Dante, emphasizing how current his work is (July 31 – Die Brüste der Madonna) and how very close his Inferno is to Norse mythology (August 11 – Hölle aus Vulkan und Eis), The New York Times and die Zeit remember the life of Roberto Calasso, a “Renaissance man of letters” who, as author and publisher, reached a broad international public (July 30 – Roberto Calasso, Renaissance Man of Letters, Dies at 80*; July 29 – Schriftsteller Roberto Calasso gestorben).
Other news outlets report on summer destinations, covering tourism, wine & food, and culture: die Welt looks at the “charm of Lake Garda” (September 2 – Warum der Gardasee uns süchtig macht) and discovers the hinterland of the Cinque Terre (September 7 – Wie die Cinque Terre Wege aus dem Overtourism suchen). Another article is dedicated to the Ligurian Riviera by Franfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (September 2 – Blüten, Schweiß und Tränen).
And while der Standard is off to discover 7 villages in various parts of the peninsula (August 30 – Sieben Insidertipps für Italien-Reisende), die Zeit tours Calabria (August 28 – Schrecken und Schönheit in Kalabrien).
Style and Luxury – The return of Salone del Mobile opens the foreign press’s coverage of style and luxury: the new, radically redesigned edition was covered in articles in Financial Times (September 3 – Milans Salone del Mobile returns with a new format*, The New York Times (September 6 – A New Way to Look at Furniture in Milan*), and The New York Times Style Magazine, September 2 – The T List: Six Things We Recommend This Week*). Other reports came from correspondents who visited the city, interested in gorgeous Milanese apartments like that of the “two design stars Fanny Bauer Grung and David Lopez Quincoces (WSJ Magazine, September 1 – The Gorgeous Milan Apartment Shared by Two Design Stars*) or of Carla Sozzani where everything “has a story, including her cat (The New York Times Style Magazine, September 7 – Everything in Carla Sozzanis Home Has a Story, Including Her Cat*).
Lastly, in jewellery, The New York Times comments on the new Pomellato collection (August 25 – High Jewelry Designers Go for Stacking in a Big Way*), while in the automotive sector Sueddeutsche Zeitung recounts the “return of Lamborghini Countach, 50 years after its introduction (August 13 – Lamborghini Countach kommt als Kleinserie zurück).
Wine & Food – Several reports are also devoted to wine & food: El País presents an itinerary among the typical, regional dishes of a “country in love with food” (September 7 – La Italia del buen gusto: un recorrido por los platos típicos de sus 20 regiones), while The New York Times Style Magazine teaches how to cook agrodolce the Southern Italian way (August 18 – Cooking Without an Oven, the Southern Italian Way*). Die Zeit also visits the South for a burrata and prosciutto sandwich (September 1 – Burrata im Pfirsich-Himmel*), as does der Standard with a recipe for reginette, a Calabrian speciality, with 4 cheeses (September 7 – Quattro Formaggi aber als Pasta: Reginette mit Vier-Käse-Sauce). The Austrian daily does not neglect the north, with the culinary tradition of the hazelnut and wild berry crostata (August 10 – Rezept für Waldbeer-Haselnuss-Crostata). Coverage is also devoted to kitchen products with The New York Times recommending an Italian vinegar for seafood (August 2 – This Multifaceted Vinegar Is Going Places*).
Sport – Sports are also making news, with the record of the national football team arriving “undefeated” for the Qatar World Cup qualifier (Sueddeutsche Zeitung, September 8 – Der Europameister feiert ein Fest), and with the Olympic successes recounted by The Wall Street Journal through the story of Marcell Jacobs, Italy’s first “fastest man” for the 100 metres (August 1 – Italys Lamont Marcell Jacobs Wins Tokyo Olympics 100 Meters, Becomes Nations First Fastest Man*).
*Article available for pay/upon registration