Other political or pressure groups: Vatican City; three major
trade union confederations (CGIL—Communist dominated, CISL—Christian
Democratic, and UIL—Social Democratic, Socialist, and Republican);
Italian manufacturers association (Confindustria); organized farm groups
(Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura)
Member of: ADB, ASSIMER, CCC, Council of Europe, DAC, EC, ECOWAS, EIB,
EMS, ESA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IDB—Inter-American
Development Bank, IFAD, IEA, IFC, IHO, ILO, ILZSG, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL,
IOOC, IPU, IRC, ITC, ITU, NATO, OAS (observer), OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WEU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WSG
Diplomatic representation: Ambassador Rinaldo PETRIGNANI; Chancery at 1601 Fuller Street NW, Washington DC 20009; telephone (202) 328-5500; there are Italian Consulates General in Boston, Chicago, Houston, New Orleans, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Consulates in Detroit and Newark (New Jersey); US—Ambassador Peter F. SECCHIA; Embassy at Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome (mailing address is APO New York 09794); telephone [39] (6) 46741; there are US Consulates General in Florence, Genoa, Milan, Naples, and Palermo (Sicily)
Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; similar to the flag of Ireland which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Ivory Coast which has the colors reversed—orange (hoist side), white, and green
- Economy Overview: Since World War II the economy has changed from one based on agriculture into a ranking industrial economy, with approximately the same total and per capita output as France and the UK. The country is still divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by large private companies and state enterprises and an undeveloped agricultural south. Services account for 58% of GDP, industry 37%, and agriculture 5%. Most raw materials needed by industry and over 75% of energy requirements must be imported. The economic recovery that began in mid-1983 has continued through 1989, with the economy growing at an annual average rate of 3%. For the 1990s, Italy faces the problems of refurbishing a tottering communications system, curbing the increasing pollution in major industrial centers, and adjusting to the new competitive forces accompanying the ongoing economic integration of the European Community.
GDP: $803.3 billion, per capita $14,000; real growth rate 3.3% (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.6% (1989 est.)
Unemployment rate: 11.9% (1989)
Budget: revenues $355 billion; expenditures $448 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1989)
Exports: $141.6 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities—textiles, wearing apparel, metals, transportation equipment, chemicals; partners—EC 57%, US 9%, OPEC 4%