The seminar was held at the prestigious Gateway Building in Circular Quay, in Sydney.
The five-day event, which aimed to examine and boost Italian trade with Australia, was opened with a welcome address by Massimo Miani, President of CNDCEC and Giovanni Gerardo Parente, President of the Associazione Internazionalizzazione Commercialisti ed Esperti Contabili (A.I.C.E.C.).
The congress included 85 accountants and business experts in attendance, and was a continuation of the previous business endeavours organised by the CNDCEC, which were held in the United Arab Emirates and the US.
At those events, a panorama was given of the principal characteristics of the economic-financial situation across Italy and Australia.
This included aspects of political economy, the balance of trade and the principal aspects relative to the exercise of entrepreneurial activity in each of the two countries.
The first speech at the Sydney congress was given by Alessandro Frino (Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Global Strategy and Professor of Economics, University of Wollongong), who discussed “comparing the professional and academic worlds”.
Frino, in his attentive analysis, revealed how the University of Wollongong is one of the most international universities in the world, with campuses in Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia and with around 40,000 students of which more than half are studying in the overseas campuses.
Furthermore, Frino spoke on the recent collaboration between the University of Wollongong and the Politecnico di Milano, which resulted in the eventual creation of a Global Executive Master in Luxury Management.
According to the agreement, students of UOW will study in the campus in Dubai and the campus at the politecnico in Milan, graduating with a degree awarded simultaneously by both universities.
The degree is expected to be very popular and will contribute to the mobility of hundreds of students between Italy and Australia.
Frino also spoke on the flow of business between Australia and Italy, which is represented by import and export of goods between the two nations.
He simultaneously analysed the capital invested by Italy in Australia and vice versa.
As it stands, exportation from Italy to Australia outweighs exportation from Australia to Italy by eight times.
The value of exportation from Italy to Australia amounts at present to around $6 billion, while the exportation from Australia to Italy amounts to under $1 billion.
The analysis revealed Italy’s large commercial surplus (which exceeds $5 billion) within its dealings with Australia.
Concluding his analysis, Frino revealed that exportation from Italy to Australia is expected to increase in the future from the current $6 billion value, while exportation from Australia to Italy is expected to decrease in value from $1 billion dollars.
It’s a good time for a “Made in Italy” campaign in Australia, although the same cannot be said of a “Made in Australia” campaign in Italy.
Following Frino’s speech, Michelle Webster (Senior Manager Austrade) spoke on the successful commercial relations between Australia and Italy, and highlighted how underneath the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement, Italian businesses which are operating on Australian soils can now access the Chinese market, which is the second largest economy in the world with almost a billion and a half consumers partaking.
