Italian foreign trade remained positive in July 2026, with export growth also affecting the food, beverage, and tobacco industries, albeit at a slower pace than the national average. According to Istat estimates, overall exports increased by 0,3% compared to June, while imports decreased by 1,2%.
The slight monthly increase in export sales is the result of a 6,9% increase in non-EU markets and a 5,6% decline in the EU. This trend was influenced by shipbuilding operations recorded in June and July, excluding which exports would have grown by 1% on a quarterly basis.
In the three months between May and July, compared to the previous three months, exports grew by 1,3%, while imports increased by 2,8%. On a year-over-year basis, Italian sales abroad rose by 4,7% in value, despite a 1,7% decrease in volume.
Within this framework, exports of the food, beverage, and tobacco industries recorded a 0,8% year-on-year increase in July, demonstrating the resilience of Italian agri-food products, although they were not a major contributor to overall growth. The primary sector, however, performed weaker, with exports of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products decreasing by 0,6% compared to July 2025.
A more marked contraction emerged in foreign purchases: imports of food, beverages, and tobacco fell by 5,3% year-over-year, while those of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products fell by 10,1%. The data therefore indicate a reduction in foreign agri-food supplies significantly greater than that of Italian sales on international markets.
Import prices also offer significant insights into the sector. In July, import prices for food, beverage, and tobacco products decreased by 3,1% year-on-year for products originating in the euro area, while those for purchases made in countries outside the eurozone increased by 1,1%.
Overall, national exports grew most strongly to non-EU markets, with a 6,6% increase, compared to the 2,7% increase recorded within the EU. Imports, on the other hand, increased by 4,6% in value but decreased by 2,7% in volume, confirming the impact of price dynamics.
The main contributors to exports were metals and metal products, which grew by 13,8%, coke and refined petroleum products, which increased by 27,3%, and the group comprising sporting goods, games, precious metals and medical instruments, which advanced by 15,9%.
Geographically, Switzerland made the largest positive contribution to Italian exports, with growth of 39,6%, followed by OPEC countries with 26,3% and China with 27,6%. The most significant negative contribution came from ASEAN markets, to which exports decreased by 26,9%.
In the first seven months of 2026, Italian exports grew by 4,6% overall, slightly faster than the 4,3% increase in imports. The trade surplus thus reached €32,9 billion, compared to €30,6 billion in the same period of 2025.
In July alone, the surplus rose from €7,83 billion to €8,24 billion, despite the widening of the energy deficit from €4,12 billion to €5,52 billion. The surplus for non-energy products, however, increased from €11,95 billion to €13,76 billion, while overall import prices rose 0,4% month-on-month and 5% compared to a year earlier.
