The new president of Assocalzaturifici Annarita Pilotti met members of the EU Parliament representing INTA (the Committee on International Trade) and ITRE (the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy) today at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Milan. Representing the INTA committee were the Chair, Bernd Lange, Alessia Mosca and Nicola Danti while the ITRE committee was represented by Werner Langen, Maria Spyraki and Simona Bonafé.
The topics discussed were EU trade policies to ensure access to international markets for SMEs and the manufacturing industry’s pivotal role in Europe’s industrial policy.
Over 80% of footwear made in Italy is exported and in fact many Italian companies have managed to resist the impact of the economic crisis thanks to their exports, by adopting repositioning strategies or through actual reorganisation, although a number of businesses are being seriously affected by various critical factors such as the difficult situation in which CIS member states find themselves.
For the Association, this meeting provided an opportunity to give the visiting MEPs a comprehensive overview of the industry which represents an important resource for Europe, and not only in terms of the quality of its products.
As Annarita Pilotti stated: "The Italian footwear industry consists of around 6,000 enterprises employing 80,000 people. An important sector, therefore, which needs European policies that ensure our businesses have access to markets, by taking more forceful action during bilateral negotiations with the most important strategic areas such as Mercosur, which is in effect a closed trade area due to its tough tariff and non-tariff barriers; or the Unites States, our third largest market, where it is necessary to align normative and certification standards and cut customs duties, which make the footwear industry the most penalised of the “made in Italy” sectors. In this respect, our Association hopes that the Trade and Investment Partnership Agreement (TTIP) between the USA and European Union will be signed as soon as possible. With Japan, too, there is a trade imbalance which is hard to comprehend: an import quota regime controlled by the domestic distribution system imposes prohibitive duties over the annual threshold set by the Government.”
Assocalzaturifici therefore continues to place great importance on Europe, and intends to work together with European institutions to achieve a clear set of rules in support of manufacturing. Particular attention is paid to the so-called reshoring phenomenon, which for some time now has been sending interesting signals of a return of production to Europe, and to innovative means of access to credit for SMEs which may help strengthen their presence in Italy. Amongst the measures to be taken in this direction, Assocalzaturifici hopes for an increase in investment in professional training projects, so as to valorise the excellence already present in the various Italian footwear districts.
Press release
Assocalzaturifici
Milan, 19 June 2015