Automotive industry in Italy

By Paolo Bricco

Into the complex Italian production tradition, the automotive industry features regained its historical centrality. The 2 strategic courses of development are obvious: the re-tooling of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ manufacturing plants, first Pomigliano d'Arco in Naples, after that Grugliasco in Turin last but not least Melfi in Basilicata.

And subsequently could be the change of European countries into a tecno-industrial platform based on German automakers as well as on the part of the element companies in countries in europe, including Italy.

The newest stage of FCA

The new stage of FCA, aims at making its Italian production facilities lucrative within the deluxe range (Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and Maserati) and also by becoming an export platform towards other areas (hence Jeep in Melfi as well as the strategic role of Alfa), has revitalized FCA’s connections with suppliers.

These days the German alternative, which regarding the strategic horizon of elements producers features replaced the 100-year-long experience of France, is irreplaceable, as was recently shown because of the report produced by Prometeia by Unioncamere on the behalf of the Senate's Industry Commission.

Moreover, the developing integration of the continental professional system in line with the German business is within line using the improvement the so-called Industry 4.0, within the form of the Automotive 4.0 tracked by industry specialists Roland Berger. According to Italian car production association Anfia, the complete Italian automotive industry numbers 3, 200 organizations and 275, 000 employees, 7per cent of manufacturing. Complete revenues add up to €88 billion euros, €31 billion that from exports, and spending for R&D is €3 billion euros. The automobile business contributes 16% of nationwide taxation revenue.

Balance sheet analysis

Cerved, commissioned by Il Sole 24 Ore, analyzed the spending plans of 917 Italian element production businesses. The first interesting factor that emerges may be the almost complete recovery associated with lost revenue. This group of 917 companies made turnover of €18.9 billion euros in 2014. That’s nevertheless 10per cent lacking the €20.7 billion in 2007, the season prior to the failure of Lehman Brothers while the spread of the financial meltdown towards production world. But it is now really above 2009's €15 billion euros in revenues.

Nonetheless, six several years of crisis took their cost on professional profitability. The 917 companies reviewed by Cerved had a 7% EBITDA in 2007. In 2014, the EBITDA endured at 5.3%, which will be not bad, it is however not as much as prior to.

Conversely, a indication usually their particular financials tend to be supporting. The Italian automotive companies seem to have worked really on business finance: the partnership between debts and net holdings features declined from 91% in 2007 to 74per cent in 2014, while between economic burdens and EBITDA, that was equal to 19.5per cent in 2007 after which exploded to 30.8% in 2008 and also to 42.8percent in '09, in 2014 it equaled an even more than workable 18.3per cent. Generally there is no danger of suffocation from extra debt.

The analysis of automotive business stability sheets reveals that this portion of our entrepreneurial system can becomes among catalysts for the economic data recovery underway, whether it be structured and organic, or impromptu and feeble.

The unknowns

Nonetheless, you will find unknowns. Firstly FAC’s strategy of moving Italian factory manufacturing from size market to higher-quality vehicles must work, plus it must make use of a rise in dimensions.

Second, the integration aided by the German design requires a significant risk, specifically as it has actually ancillary features: the tough struggle amongst the German and Asian manufacturers over leadership on the worldwide market could end in favor regarding the latter, at the least with regards to the technologies that may contour the near future assets of markets.

Therefore being defectively represented in Asia, particularly in Japan and South Korea is difficulty. For Italian element industry this is the problem.