Italian Imports' 7% Rise in 2025 Despite Tariffs Bespeaks US K-Shaped Economy
By Reuters | 17 Feb, 2026

Accelerating income growth of upper-middle-class and wealthy Americans gave Italian imports a surprising boost despite Trump's 15% EU tariffs.

Italian exports to the United States rose by more than 7% last year, data showed on Tuesday, despite tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump in July which had triggered fears of a major dampening impact.

Imports from Italy, the European Union's third-largest economy, are subject to a 15% tariff imposed on most EU goods, with additional duties threatened against pasta makers amid an anti-dumping probe from the U.S. Commerce Department.

Nonetheless, Italian exports to the U.S. totaled 69.6 billion euros ($82.41 billion) in 2025, up 7.2% from the year earlier, national statistics bureau ISTAT reported.

Italy's trade surplus with the United States, at 34.2 billion euros, was the largest surplus it posted with any country last year, though it was down 12% year-on-year due to a 36% annual jump in imports.

The reason for Italy's export growth to the US is that several of its top export categories are products coveted by US affluents.  The top category was premium auto brands like Ferrari and Lamborghini, with the US being the top destination for Italy's $47 billion in luxury auto exports.

Italy is the world's leading exporter of leather goods and sunglasses, with the US being the top destination for premium brands Gucci, Prada and Armani.

Other Italian exports favored by affluent Americans are wine and pasta.

Italy also registered particularly large trade surpluses in 2025 with Switzerland and the United Kingdom, each amounting to more than 19 billion euros. 

The 15% U.S. import tariff announced in a deal with the EU on July 27 came at the end of protracted negotiations involving threats by Trump of even higher duties which had sparked volatility on financial markets and alarm among exporters.

The head of Italian business lobby Emanuele Orsini warned in July that even a tariff of 10% on EU products could reduce Italian exports to the U.S. by 20 billion euros in 2026 and cost 118,000 jobs.

In December alone, Italian exports to the US totaled 5.6 billion euros, down 0.4% from the same month of 2024, ISTAT said. 

The country's exports to the U.S. have continued to expand on average since the tariffs took effect in August, despite a volatile monthly trend.

Overall, Italy posted a trade surplus with the rest of the world of 6.0 billion euros ($7.15 billion) in December, compared with a surplus of 5.1 billion euros in the same month of 2024, ISTAT said.

In 2025 as a whole, it recorded a global trade surplus of 50.7 billion euros, compared to a surplus of 48.3 billion euros the year before.

($1 = 0.8445 euros)

(Reporting by Enrico Sciacovelli, additional reporting Claudio Piacquadio and Goldsea staff, editing by Gavin Jones and Goldsea staff)