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🏖 Foreign visitor spending in Italy grew by 8% in June, with a tourism trade balance surplus of €3.2 billion, up from €3.0 billion in June 2023. Italy's Banca d'Italia reports foreign travelers spent €6.1 billion and Italian travelers abroad spent €2.9 billion. The Q2 2024 balance hit €7.4 billion (0.4% of GDP), a rise from €6.7 billion in Q2 2023. EU travelers' spending in Italy surged by 14.4%, outpacing non-EU visitors' 5.4% increase.

📈 In Q2 2024, the market services sector in Italy saw a 0.3% increase in added value, offsetting a 0.8% decline in the industrial sector. The economy grew by 0.1%, with rental and travel agencies (1.4%), information and communication (1.2%), and professional activities (1.1%) leading the growth. However, wholesale trade connected to manufacturing fell by 0.4%. Service exports rose slightly year-over-year, representing 5.5% of Italy's GDP compared to France and Germany's 11.5% and 9%. Inflation in the services sector increased marginally to 3.1% in July and August from 2.9% in the previous quarter. Employment in the sector set a record, with a 0.2% increase in workforce units compared to 2022, driven by a 0.4% rise in salaried work. The financial and insurance activities (+0.3%) and the professional sector (+0.6%) saw employment boosts, while transport and hospitality services faced a 0.5% decrease, and communication and information services dropped by 1.3%.