Growth returns – The foreign press has asserted that Italy is leaving the recession behind and sees 2015 as a year of growth. This is seen not only in the ISTAT data reported by the New York Times (May 8 – Italy’s Economy Seen Returning to Growth in 2015) Washington Post (May 8 – Italy’s economy seen returning to growth in 2015), Bloomberg (May 13 – Italian Economy Grows, Paving Way for Possible End to Slump) and Le Monde (May 13 – L’Italie retrouve enfin la croissance) and Les Echos (May 13 –L’Italie émerge finalement de plus de trois ans de récession), but also in the forecasts of the country’s two major credit institutions, which – as Les Echos states – believe in an acceleration of the economy (May 13 – Intesa SanPaolo et UniCredit croient à l’accélération de la reprise italienne*). Positive signals are also reflected in the credit sector. Intesa Sanpaolo has exceded analysts’ expectations (Financial Times, May 11 – Intesa Sanpaolo’s net profits rise on improved trading; Bloomberg, 11 – Intesa Quarterly Profit Beats Estimates on Trading Income), as has Mediobanca (Reuters, May 8 – Mediobanca Q3 net profit doubles to top forecast), while UBI has seen growth in net earnings and capital reserves (Reuters, May 13 – UBI Q1 net profit rises, boosts core capital).
The rebirth of Milan – The spotlights are still turned on Milan, with a series of projects tied to Expo. The Financial Times reported on the city’s rebirth, thanks to the architectural renewal in new districts suchas as Citylife and Porta Nuova (May 8 – How Milan’s architectural makeover is boosting city’s renaissance*). Renewal is also seen in new initiatives of the National Chamber of Fashion, which is planning to challenge Paris, New York and London to reclaim leadership in the sector (New York Times, May 12 – Italian Fashion Makes a Bid for Global Leadership).
The wealth of culture is also making a decision change in how the city is perceived. The recently inaugurated Prada Foundation continues to attract the interest of the foreign press, such as Les Echos (May 10 – Nathalie Obadia : «La Fondation Prada va avoir un impact majeur en Italie»*), Financial Times (May 8 – Seven exhibitions inaugurate Milan’s Prada Foundation*) and Time, which wrote about the new Bar Luce run by director Wes Anderson inside Expo (May 12- This Wes Anderson-Themed Cafe Just Opened in Milan).
Italian culture, from the Biennale to Cannes – There is more to culture than Milan and interest also went to the year’s other great event: the Venice Biennale. Le Monde took its readers on a tour of the pavilions (May 8 – De l’art, des armes et des larmes à la Biennale de Venise), and the New York Times wrote about how the presence of female artists has taken centre stage this year (May 10 – Venice Biennale Represents Rebalancing in the Art World*). Finally, Bloomberg Businessweek, published an article on the new concepts arriving from China (May 13 – China Ditches Feng Shui For Avant Garde Show At Venice Biennale)
Still in Veneto, if not in the lagoon, the Financial Times visited the exhibition Carpaccio, Vittore and Benedetto from Venice to Istria, in Conegliano, presenting some little known masterpieces of this family of painters ( 10 – Carpaccio: Vittore and Benedetto from Venice to Istria, Palazzo Sarcinelli, Conegliano, Italy — review*). El Pais told its readers about 13 tourist and cultural destinations off the beaten track (May 13 – Trece pistas italianas fuera de ruta).
There was also space in the cultural pages of the foreign press for cinema and literature. The New York Times wrote about the assault of Italian writers at the Festival of Cannes, where Matteo Garrone, Nanni Moretti and Paolo Sorrentino are competing (May 13 – Italian Directors Take the Cannes Film Festival by Storm) and Liberation published a review of the latest book by Umberto Eco (May 13 – Umberto Eco, au nom du zéro).
Cooking and the agrifood sector – Items on cooking and the Italian agrifood business is obligatory during Expo. L’Orient le Jour ran a piece about the melding of innovation and food proposed by Expo (May 8 – À Milan, l’avenir est déjà au supermarché), the Financial Times travelled around the peninsula to try of the country’s most exclusive wines (May 8 – Italy’s precious past*), and New York Times posted a video on its site about how to make fresh pasta (May 8 – Fresh Pasta, Made Simply*). Meanwhile, The Times suggest the best ways to discover the Mediterranean taste of Apulia (May 9 – Eat! A taste of Puglia), Reuters focused on finance, and coffee giant Lavazza’s plans for growth through acquisitions (May 12 – Lavazza wants to expand through acquisitions).
Fashion and style – In the space usually dedicated to fashion and style, there is an article about Yoox, whose sales are even better than predicted (Reuters, May 11 – Italy’s Yoox meets forecasts with flat core profit ahead of merger) and the marketing initiatives of Ferrari, which is planning to open another theme park in Spain, after that of Abud Dhabi (Expansion, 8 – Ferrari construirá su parque temático junto a ‘PortAventura’; El Mundo, May 11 – Ferrari Land arranca motores). There was also interest in design, with portraits of Giampiero Bodino, a high end jeweler, New York Times, May 14 – The Ideal of Luxury) and two stars of interior design, Rodolfo Dordoni (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, May 11 – Er denkt funktional) and Giulio Iacchetti (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, May 10 – Mehrweg ist auch ein Weg).
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