Italian companies have the ability to neutralize much of the economic impact from the new 15% U.S. duties through articulated strategies of market diversification and production process efficiency. The reallocation of Italian exports - now directed to the United States worth about 66-70 billion euros - to alternative markets can allow them to recover between 5 and 8 billion euros in turnover, especially in the agri-food, mechanical, fashion and design sectors. At the same time, cost-cutting measures, automation, logistical reorganization and partial production relocation to the U.S. could generate savings of up to 2 to 3 billion euros a year. In total, the potential for the Italian production system to absorb the impact is between 7 and 11 billion euros, compared with an estimated effective duty exposure of between 6.7 and 7.5 billion. This is what Unimpresa's Centro Studi explains in a report, according to which it is a demanding but manageable challenge that calls for supporting companies with targeted industrial policies, access to subsidized credit and internationalization incentives.
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