Flag description: 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 Cote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed-orange (hoist side), white, and green
@Italy:Economy
Economy-overview: Since World War II, the Italian 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. This basically capitalistic economy is still divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south, with large public enterprises and more than 20% unemployment. Most raw materials needed by industry and over 75% of energy requirements must be imported. In the second half of 1992, Rome became unsettled by the prospect of not qualifying to participate in EU plans for economic and monetary union later in the decade; thus, it finally began to address its huge fiscal imbalances. Subsequently, the government has adopted fairly stringent budgets, abandoned its inflationary wage indexation system, and started to scale back its generous social welfare programs, including pension and health care benefits. In November 1996 the lire rejoined the European monetary system, which it had left in September 1992 when under extreme pressure in currency markets. Italy faces the problem of restructuring its economy to meet Maastricht criteria for inclusion in the EMU, together with other problems of refurbishing a tottering communications system, curbing industrial pollution, and adjusting to new EU and global competitive forces.
GDP: purchasing power parity-$1.24 trillion (1997 est.)
GDP-real growth rate: 1.5% (1997 est.)
GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$21,500 (1997 est.)
GDP-composition by sector: agriculture: 3.3% industry: 33% services: 63.7% (1994)
Inflation rate-consumer price index: 1.9% (1997 est.)
Labor force: total: 22.851 million by occupation: services 61%, industry 32%, agriculture 7% (1996)
Unemployment rate: 12.2% (December 1997 est.)