We provide an in-depth analysis of Italy's export performance relative to the other main euro-area countries over the last two decades, using both macro and micro data. We argue that the relatively unsatisfactory performance of Italian goods exports until the eve of the 2008-09 crisis is the...

The recent debate on Italy's unsatisfactory economic performance has been focused on the increasing competitive pressures exerted by foreign firms localized in low-wage developing countries and specialized in products where Italy used to hold a comparative advantage. This paper aims at...