Lower tariffs initiative launched in Tuscany - The gold sector is looking once again to corner the gold market in the United States by launching 'Abasso i dazi' (Lower Tariffs), an initiative created in Tuscany to facilitate access to Italian gold products on what is their primary market.
The main goal of the initiative is to come to an agreement with the U.S. administration regarding customs fees, in order to give a proper value to the product and its Tuscan and Italian origins.
The Federorafi (Federation of Italian Goldsmiths) initiative is backed by the Regione Toscana and by regional president Claudio Martini, who noted: ''Moving forward in this way allows Made in Italy products to return to a higher competitive level, whose benefits are evident on the national scale and on the local Arezzo gold production''.
Martini added: ''According to a feasibility study done by an international company, this is our only option for the immediate future''.
Access to the US market has proven difficult in recent years. From 1996 to 2006, imports from Italian goldsmiths declined from 1.2 billion dollars to 830 million dollars while those of the principle competitors (India, Turkey, China, Thailand and Israel) have tripled, going from 1.2 billion to 3 billion dollars.
US import tax, currently at 5.5%, produces a median impact of almost 50% on the added value of Italian companies.
Following the Regione Toscana's support of the initiative, Federorafi national president Antonio Zucchi noted: ''We finally have a shared national effort backed by regional governments. It is a concrete example of how to create a system and not remain isolated''.
Confindustria Federorafi spokesman Giuliano Chini said: ''The Tuscan Region's involvement has broken a taboo. For years we have been asking national institutions for support on this issue, which, if successful, will represent the most important support initiative in the history of Made in Italy''.
