Economy – This week’s reporting on Italy in the foreign press concentrates on company growth plans. Bloomberg explains how Illy is counting on a stake sale to fuel expansion on the American market (December 10 – Illycaffe Kicks Off Stake Sale to Fuel U.S. Expansion*), while Reuters covers the operation delivered in the United States by Enel, which will provide “New York City’s biggest battery storage system,” needed in order to make Brooklyn’s grid “cleaner and more resilient” (December 9 – Brooklyn gets New York’s biggest battery park from Italy’s Enel, a story also featured in The New York Times – Brooklyn Gets New York’s Biggest Battery Park From Italy’s Enel*). The press agency also covers the listing of Sanlorenzo, the luxury yacht group whose capitalization will exceed € 500 million (December 6 – Italy’s Sanlorenzo prices IPO at 16 euros per share, a story also covered in The New York Times December 6 – Italy’s Sanlorenzo Prices IPO at 16 Euros/share*).
Culture – Numerous reports are devoted to culture: The New York Times commemorates the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, presenting an itinerary that departs from Vinci and winds its way amid cities and villages to celebrate the Tuscan genius (December 10 – Following in the Footsteps of Leonardo da Vinci*), and discusses the “Ferrante effect” of “women writers ascendant” in Italy (December 9 – ‘The Ferrante Effect’: In Italy, Women Writers Are Ascendant*). The American daily also devotes coverage to a visit to Pietrasanta and the workshops of sculptors who translate “artists’ ideas into marble and bronze” (December 4 – In Italy, Art Becomes Reality). And while Financial Times reviews the “powerful” Tosca on opening night at La Scala, “the nation’s most important cultural event” (December 9 – La Scala’s season opens with a powerful Tosca*), Libération profiles the actress Caterina Murino, emphasizing her bond to Sardinian culture (December 8 – CATERINA MURINO, ELLE SE RESSEMBLE*).
Tourism, wine & food, and lifestyle – In tourism, El País’s supplement El Viajero pays a visit to the Marche, “an Italy waiting to be discovered,” full of “towns rich in art and history” (December 12 – Las Marcas, una Italia por descubrir). In wine & food, Financial Times covers wines, remarking on investors’ “growing demand” for Piedmont’s “liquid jewels” (December 6 –Italian wine investors return to ancient pedigrees*), while The New York Times reviews the baked pasta at Fiaschetteria Pistoia, a West Village establishment (December 10 – Baked Pastas Nodding to Florence Come to the West Village*). Der Standard, on the other hand, writes that “Christmas in Verona means Pandoro” (December 10 – Pandoro: Zu Weihnachten gibt es nicht nur Panettone).
El País also devotes coverage to lifestyle with the story of Princess Scilla Ruffo of Calabria and her benefits in Milan at Lapo Elkann’s company Garage Italia (December 11 – La princesa pinchadiscos que anima a la ‘jet set’). Lastly, Die Zeit reports on the new electric version of an icon: the Vespa that has sold 18 million units since 1946 (December 6 – Ohne Geknatter und trotzdem schnell).
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