Growth of Italian businesses –Europe’s economic difficulties should little sign of abating, and so businesses are looking towards emerging markets. Italian business is certainly no exception. The Hindu Business Line reported that Fiat is getting ready to open over 100 showrooms in India (May 13 – Fiat India to open 110 showrooms this year) while Brazil’s Valor Economico reported that the confectioner giant Ferrero is making plans to open a new factory in this important Latin American country. (May 12- Grupo Ferrero negocia construir nova fábrica nos Camarões) .
Globalization is also the key to success of Luxottica, a leader in Italy’s eyewear sector, and the reason why – according to the German economic paper Handelsblatt – the company continues to shine like the sun (May 14 – Grüß’ mir die Sonne ). The same thing is true of the duty free sector of Autogrill, which is about to be quoted separately on the Milan stock exchange come the fall (Les Echos, May 15 – Autogrill choisit la Bourse de Milan pour son pôle « duty free »).
Traveling, racing and cuisine – As usual, the foreign press also showed its fascination with Italian sights, sound and taste. The English papern The English paper, The Guardian took its readers to the discovery of Incontri in Terra di Siena, a music festival set in the beauty of the Tuscan hills (May 12 – Tuning in to a Tuscan music festival) and the New York Times lands close by in Spoleto, with an article reviewing clubs, hotels and restaurants in the Umbrian town (May 15 – Travel Essentials | Spoleto, Italy).
The American paper also celebrated another Italian event, the Mille Miglia, a revival of a race that has reignited Italy’s passion for racecars (May 11 – Mille Miglia Reignites Italy’s Racing Passions), seen also in the record number of entries (May 16– 2013 Mille Miglia Features Record Entry Numbers). Still writing about cars, there was an article dedicated to the 50 years of Lamborghini, the hyper-sophisticated make that still stupefies its fans (The New York Times, May 13 – Lamborghini Surprises Its 50th Anniversary Faithful With a New Concept) .
Finally, there was some reporting on Italian culinary culture. The Brazilian paper Valor Economico wrote lavishly about the wine passito di Pantelleria (the production of a victory over nature (May 16- Passito di Pantelleria, uma vitória sobre a natureza*). Meanwhile, the New York Times traveled to Liguria to pay tribute to the Gtora pasqualina, a peasant pie that is now recognized as a delicacy for all palates (May 15 – A Pie That Has Stepped Up in Class).
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