Six proposals for SMEs in the South: give the green light and make the tax credit structural in the single SEZ; reform the Guarantee Fund for SMEs by making investment and liquidity support structural, raising the threshold to 5 or 10 million; allow the aggregation of Transition 5.0 incentives with the single SEZ tax credit; promote the dimensional growth of SMEs through a tax credit on expenses relating to basket bonds; promote incentives for capitalization; provide incremental incentives and tax relief for SMEs in internal areas.
These are the priorities indicated by the Small Industry of Campania, on the occasion of the presentation of the annual report dedicated to 2023. «Campania was the first Italian region for exports _ says Francesco Izzo, professor of Innovation Strategies and Management at the University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, who edited and presented the Report – The manufacturing sector recorded a 30% increase in exports in 2023, driven by the pharmaceutical and automotive sectors, as revealed by Istat. And in particular from two large companies such as Novartis and Stellantis.”
Construction and commerce accelerate
A positive year, despite a slight decrease in the number of local units compared to 2020. The food, metal product manufacturing and clothing sectors are also dominant. But the sector in which significant growth has been recorded is that of construction, with an increase of over 6 thousand local units in just one year, influenced by national policies (Superbonus) to support building renovation interventions. In the services sector, trade (wholesale and retail) is dominant, although declining compared to the previous year. Other relevant sectors are freight transport, hotels and restaurants, as well as professional, scientific and technical activities. The 2024 and 2025 forecasts indicate a slight recovery thanks to the impact of the PNRR investments. Of concern are the high rates of poverty, aggravated by precarious employment and low work intensity. The bill for the implementation of the differentiated autonomy of the regions with ordinary statute will have significant implications on the government and organization of regional policies. On the public investment front, the gap between actual spending and expected spending of the PNRR is widening.
The study was presented to the Industrial Union of Naples by Pasquale Lampugnale (regional president and national vice-president of PI Confindustria): «SMEs in Campania – he says – need investment support tools, in particular to face epochal challenges such as the digital transition and sustainability. However, the current conditions of access to credit and finance do not favor investments, and without the latter the country’s competitiveness is put at risk. While awaiting the possible easing of the ECB’s monetary tightening, which has so far displaced businesses’ demand for credit and penalized SMEs in particular, to which higher interest rates are applied on average, it is necessary to intervene promptly by strengthening the measures for access to credit and to alternative finance by SMEs, alongside other incentives that are essential but not sufficient on their own”.
The big picture: The service sector dominates
Campania has almost 397 thousand local units in 2021, up compared to the previous year. Almost all of these companies have fewer than ten employees, with the province of Naples representing approximately 52% of the total local units in the region. The five provinces of Campania show substantial uniformity in the distribution of local units by sector and class of employees. The service sector is prevalent in all provinces, followed by construction and manufacturing.
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2024-03-26 07:09:42