While the number of Italian companies is decreasing, the number of foreign companies active in Italy is growing. At the end of 2024, the number of foreign-led companies registered in Italy reached 670,000, up 27% from ten years earlier (there were 530,000 at the end of 2014). And about a third of these have passed the ten-year mark. By way of comparison, the number of Italian firms decreased by 5.6% to 5.2 million over the same time period (it was 5.5 million at the end of 2014). The sector with the largest presence of foreign firms is trade, where as many as 92,604 companies boast more than 10 years of activity (37.5% of the total). Construction follows with 54,240 firms (22%), while catering and accommodation account for 8.3% of the total. Also significant is the presence in manufacturing (17,086 enterprises) and business services (11,673). The contribution to handicrafts is significant: nearly 30% of the longstanding foreign firms operate in this sector, showing a strong rootedness in local production traditions. Lombardy is the region with the largest number of long-standing foreign businesses: there are 44,069 with an incidence of 17.9% of the total.