After 2018 closed with a loss of 4.5% in worth and 9.6% in amounts exported, the Italian stone sector slid again in foreign sales in the first quarter of 2019. This was shown by the data processed by the Confindustria Marmomacchine Studies Center, which point out how in the first three months of the year Italy’s overall exports of marbles, granites and ornamental stone generally – both finished and raw products – amounted to 547,000 tons (8% less than in the same period a year ago) for worth of 396.7 million euros (-3.3%).
Unfortunately, figures for the first 3 months indicate a further slowdown in exports of finished and semi-finished products, down 4.7% in worth (for 305.5 million euros), while the “blocks and slabs” component rose a bit from the first quarter of 2018 (+1.7% for 92.2 million).
China was again the top market for raw Italian stones, with 48 million euros worth of imports (+8.7%), followed by India with 11,9 million (+4.4%). Where worked materials were concerned, the United States once again led the ranking of destination countries, with 85 million euros in orders (-1.3%), followed by Germany (28.6 million, down 5.5%) while France rose to third place, thanks to an increase of 28.3% (20.6 million). And if Switzerland (17.5 million, -0.8%) and Canada (12.4 million, -1.8%) remained stable, there were losses in sales to the United Kingdom (12.4 million, down 17.2%), the Persian Gulf countries – United Arab Emirates (9.3 million, -10.5%), Saudi Arabia (7.6 million, -2.1%), Kuwait (7.1 million, -2.9%) – and China (7 million, down 12.4%).