An uncertain 2026 is expected for Italian gold and jewelry companies. This is what Mediobanca indicates in a study presented on the eve of Vicenzaoro. The report, titled “The Gold, Silver, and Jewelry Sector in Italy,” was conducted on approximately 250 companies with revenues exceeding €5 million, whose sales represent 90% of the entire Italian gold, silver, and jewelry industry. It is, in short, a comprehensive panel, focusing on three production districts: Arezzo, Vicenza, and Valenza, and with input from the Confindustria Federorafi Research Center.
According to the Mediobanca research center, the sector recorded a 5% increase in revenues in 2024, albeit with varying trends. Companies in the Arezzo and Vicenza districts grew (both +8%), but the situation in Valenza was negative (-3%). These results are the result of exports: Arezzo saw a 119.3% increase, Vicenza 14.9%, while Valenza fell 1.8%. However, these figures are influenced by the international economic situation. Exports in the sector were impacted by purchases from Turkey, due to that country’s tax policy. In the first quarter of 2025, things changed: companies in Vicenza saw a 5% increase in foreign sales, while Valenza and Arezzo saw a decline of 14.4% and 22.8%.
It’s therefore not surprising that the impact of US tariffs is unhealthy for Italian companies. Only 45% expect an increase in 2025, while 43% expect a decline and 12% expect a stable performance. Arezzo (52%) and Valenza (50%) are more optimistic, while Vicenza and the other areas have seen higher percentages of declines (46% and 41%) than increases (42% and 35%).
77.8% of businesses are concerned about geopolitical instability, and the threat of tariffs is worrying 61.9% of them. While 2024 saw significant export growth (+41.4%), the first five months of 2025 indicate a 15.2% decline in exports (year-over-year), worsening from the -9.1% recorded in the first quarter. Not only are tariffs negatively impacting the results, but also the decline in exports to Turkey, which, after the abnormal increases in 2024 and the introduction of government countermeasures, recorded a 42.2% contraction from January to May 2025, although it still represents 25.8% of total exports. In the first half of 2025, however, foreign sales to the United Arab Emirates (+18.5%) and Switzerland (+15.3%) increased. Exports to the United States decreased by 18.9% and now account for only 8.3% of the total. France (-20.4%), Ireland (-26.8%), and Hong Kong (-3.7%) also declined. Exports to the Netherlands, Germany, the United Kingdom, and Panama increased. In the Far East, exports to Japan and China increased by 16.4% and 20.6%, respectively, during the period under review.
In the January-May 2025 period, however, goldsmith imports increased by 3.1%, to €960 million. Despite this, the sector’s trade balance remains positive, at €4,920 million. However, compared to the same period in 2024, the decline is 18%, equivalent to approximately €1,080 million less.
According to an analysis by the Confindustria Federoarfi Research Center, the recent US-EU agreement on 15% tariffs on goldsmith products could lead to an erosion of up to 75% of added value, especially for small and medium-sized companies and for unbranded products. To ensure adequate margins, companies would need to increase prices in the US by 20%.
One section of the research focuses on ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) issues, whose adoption is lower than in other sectors: only 61.5% of companies have launched awareness initiatives, with significant peaks in the Valenza district (77.8%), while Arezzo (60%), Vicenza (59.1%), and other areas (57.1%) are below the national average. Seventy percent of companies are committed to responsible supply chain management, and over two-thirds are focused on reducing fossil fuels, using renewable energy, waste management, and recycling.
Mediobanca’s research also provides a snapshot of the sector, which comprises approximately 1,870 joint-stock companies, with an average age of 22. The workforce employed in 2024 was approximately 19,000 (+3.2% compared to 2023), of which 51% were women. But with significant differences: in Vicenza, the share rises to 63%, in Valenza to 54%, in the remaining areas to 55%, while in Arezzo, the male presence predominates (60% men, 40% women). Eighty-five percent of businesses are family-run, with boards of directors consisting of an average of three members.
