The confirmation of GE Oil&Gas commitment in Florence and Massa, the strengthening of Eli Lilly in Sesto Fiorentino, the centrality of the plants near Arezzo for Power One and its leadership in the inverters used for renewable energy. These are just some examples of the strong presence of American businesses in Tuscany. And the axis between the USA and the Region is also supported by some figures: there are approximately one hundred stars and stripes groups on the Tuscan territory, while five thousand businesses that originated in Tuscany are now active in the United States (500 of them are large or medium enterprises) and the trans-Atlantic exports amounted to nearly 2.5 billion Euros in 2013.
Important statistics that urge us to exploit the new potentialities of the USA-Tuscany alliance by both sides, and to understand how the Italian region is able to make itself increasingly attractive to American capital and groups, beginning with the opportunities that could emerge for Tuscany’s economy from larger mergers in the transportation sector (General Electric-Alstom) and in pharmaceuticals (Glaxo-Novartis), two of the region’s most developed industrial sectors. These were the themes explored in the convention that brought together approximately seventy entrepreneurs from American (General Electric, Eli Lilly, Philip Morris, Twentieth Century Fox and Walt Disney) and Italian (Salvatore Ferragamo, MonnaLisa, and Scervino are some examples from the fashion sector) groups, as well as the American Ambassador to Italy, John R. Phillips, under the guidance of the American Chamber of Commerce in Italy. The meeting was preceeded by a seminar on the opportunities for business in the United Sates for Tuscan agencies, specifically in the fashion and foodstuffs sector.
Ambassador Phillips underscored the importance of strengthening the alliance between the USA and Italy, and highlighted Tuscany’s great ability in attracting investments and stressing the ability to, during times of crisis, “convince multinationals like Eli Lilly and General Electric to continue to invest and to open new production lines. Additionally “there are not only challenges that must be tackled individually – the Ambassador declared – but also those that should be faced together, demonstrating to the world that the United States, the European Union and Italy remain united in the face of any challenge. By focusing our attention on economic growth through the passage of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, we can provide both sides of the Atlantic with great opportunities for growth.”
In partnership with IlSole24Ore