Italian exports: Istat data for 2025 and 2026 by country and how many exporters there are

In short: according to the Istat-ICE Yearbook (2026 edition, published on 16 July 2026), in 2025 Italian exports of goods were worth 643.2 billion euro, +3.3% on 2024. The first market is Germany, with 11.2% of national exports, followed by the United States (10.8%) and France (10.1%); then Spain (5.9%), Switzerland (5.5%) and the United Kingdom (4.2%). The operators that sold goods abroad in 2025 are 126,491. For every country you export to, there is a foreign client to check before delivering.

How much does Italy export and to which countries?

The 2025 annual data come from the Istat-ICE statistical yearbook (market shares) and from the Istat press release "Foreign trade and import prices - December 2025", published on 17 February 2026 (growth by country).

The Istat press release of 17 February 2026 adds that the growth of export value in 2025 is driven both by sales to EU markets (+4.2%) and by those to some non-EU partners, including Switzerland, the United States and OPEC countries (+11.0%). Exports fell towards Turkey (-23.1%, after strong growth in 2024) and, to a lesser extent, towards China (-6.6%). The Yearbook flags as less dynamic markets, due to a loss of share, Turkey, China and the United Kingdom.

The general picture for 2025 according to the Yearbook: imports 592.5 billion (+3.2%), trade balance +50.7 billion (+48.3 in 2024); services exported 148.6 billion (+4.4%). Balances for 2025 with some countries, according to the February press release: United States +34,191 million euro (from +38,883), Switzerland +19,722 million (from +14,424), Spain +5,083 million (from +599), China -46,290 million (from -36,729).

Sum of the shares of the five countries in the table covered by the foreign company check (Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom): 36.9% of Italian exports 2025 (our calculation on Istat-ICE Yearbook 2026 data; the shares are rounded).

How are exports doing in 2026?

The latest monthly foreign trade release is that of August 2026, published on 16 October 2026. The release on non-EU trade for September 2026 was published on 29 October 2026.

By country, on an annual basis, in August 2026 Switzerland (+57.1%) and the United States (+31.2%) provide the largest positive contributions to national exports, followed by China (+32.7%) and OPEC countries (+17.8%). The largest negative contribution comes from France (-8.3%). In September 2026, within non-EU trade, exports to Switzerland (+38.1%), China (+31.4%) and Turkey (+20.7%) increase, while those to OPEC countries (-7.9%) and the United States (-6.6%) decrease. These are single-month changes and should be read as such: Istat also points out for September 2026 the effect of shipbuilding sales recorded in September 2025.

For those who sell abroad, the reading that changes from one month to the next is geography: countries that grow in one month may not grow in the next, and a market that weighs little in the monthly data can be decisive for your company.

How many Italian companies export?

For the figures on exporters the Istat-ICE Yearbook 2026 uses two different counts, and it is worth keeping them separate.

78.3% of sales on foreign markets in 2025 is made by 5,831 operators with exports above 15 million euro. Micro exporters are the largest segment but contribute 0.2% of the value. According to the Yearbook, 44.1% of operators export to a single market and 18.9% operate in more than 10 markets.

For active exporting companies of 2024, 50.2% are manufacturing, 36.9% trade and 12.9% other sectors. Companies with 0-9 employees number 65,852 (in 2023 there were 66,366).

The number of operators per country is the closest measure to "how many Italians sell there": in 2025 Switzerland has 48,903 presences, the United States 40,110, the United Kingdom 35,165, France 29,726, Germany 29,322, Spain 26,291, Poland 22,118. An operator that sells in several countries is counted once for each country.

What it means for those who sell on credit

A cautious reading, without attributing to the figures more than they say.

• The markets are few and concentrated. Germany, the United States and France account for 32.1% of exports (sum of the shares 11.2%, 10.8% and 10.1%, our calculation on Istat-ICE Yearbook 2026 data). If you sell in one of these countries you are in the company of many other exporters: Istat counts 29,322 operators in Germany.
• More exports mean more foreign counterparties. The data count exporters, not their clients: we do not know how many foreign clients there are, but for each one you buy from or sell to you need to understand who it is.
• A country growing says nothing about your client. Switzerland's +16.3% in 2025 is an aggregate figure. For your individual client what matters is its situation: does it exist? who manages it? does it have negative signals?
• A new market has unknown counterparties. If you open up to a growing country (in August 2026, for example, Switzerland and the United States), your first clients have no history with you. Start with more cautious payments and check the counterparty in the register of its country.
• Risk does not coincide with volume. Export data do not measure late payments or insolvencies: do not draw from them any indication of the creditworthiness of a country's clients.

What to check, step by step, before a first shipment: how to check a foreign client before exporting. For the individual registers: Handelsregister (Germany), Registro Mercantil (Spain) and KRS (Poland). For Switzerland see commercial register extract of a Swiss company.

How to read these data

• Values and changes in current euro. The 2025 export of 643.2 billion is in value. Istat distinguishes growth in value from growth in volume: for 2025 the Yearbook indicates unit values +2.6% and volumes +0.6%.
• Share of exports. It is the share of a country in the total of Italian goods exports, not Italy's market share in the country.
• Operators and exporting companies. The first count is that of foreign trade (2025), the second that of the business structure (2024). They are not comparable and refer to different years.
• Presences. The number of operators per country counts presences: whoever sells in several countries appears several times.
• Monthly data. They are provisional: non-EU trade includes the United Kingdom without Northern Ireland in the preliminary figure, as indicated in the Istat methodological note.
• Goods only. The values cited concern goods; services have separate figures in the Yearbook.
• Different periods. Annual 2025 data, monthly 2026 data and cumulative figures should not be compared with one another without looking at the date next to each number.

When will the next data be published?

According to the Istat releases, the next release on foreign trade (September 2026) is expected on 13 November 2026; the one on non-EU foreign trade (October 2026) on 27 November 2026.

For accountants. If one of your clients opens sales to a new client in Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom or Poland, the foreign company check at 14.90€ gives you the picture from the country's register, without subscription and without registration: you pay for the single check.

Sources

• Istat-ICE, Statistical Yearbook Foreign trade and international activities of companies, 2026 edition, press note of 16 July 2026 (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Istat, Foreign trade and import prices - December 2025 (17 February 2026) (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Istat, Foreign trade and import prices - August 2026 (16 October 2026) (accessed 11/11/2026)
• Istat, Non-EU foreign trade - September 2026 (29 October 2026) (accessed 11/11/2026)

Veryfy is not affiliated with Istat or the ICE Agency.