thing,
production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment,
chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals and nonferrous
metals

Exports - partners: EU 56.8% (Germany 16.4%, France 12.9%,
Netherlands 7.1%, Spain 6.3%, Netherlands 2.9%), US 9.5% (1999)

Imports: $231.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Imports - commodities: engineering products, chemicals, transport
equipment, energy products, minerals and nonferrous metals, textiles
and clothing; food, beverages and tobacco

Imports - partners: EU 61% (Germany 19.3%, France 12.6%, Netherlands
6.3%, Spain 4.4%), US 5.0% (1999)

Debt - external: $NA

Economic aid - donor: ODA, $1.3 billion (1997)

Currency: Italian lira (ITL); euro (EUR)

note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced the euro as a common
currency that is now being used by financial institutions in Italy
at a fixed rate of 1,936.27 Italian lire per euro and will replace
the local currency for all transactions in 2002

Currency code: ITL; EUR

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854
(2000), 0.9386 (1999); Italian lire per US dollar - 1,688.7 (January
1999), 1,736.2 (1998), 1,703.1 (1997), 1,542.9 (1996)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Italy Communications

Telephones - main lines in use: 25 million (1999)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 20.5 million (1999)

Telephone system: general assessment: modern, well developed, fast;
fully automated telephone, telex, and data services

domestic: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks

international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (with a total
of 5 antennas - 3 for Atlantic Ocean and 2 for Indian Ocean), 1
Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region), and NA Eutelsat; 21 submarine
cables

Radio broadcast stations: AM about 100, FM about 4,600, shortwave 9
(1998)

Radios: 50.5 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 358 (plus 4,728 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions: 30.3 million (1997)

Internet country code: .it

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 93 (Italy and Holy See) (2000)

Internet users: 11.6 million (2000)

Italy Transportation

Railways: total: 19,394 km

standard gauge: 18,071 km 1.435-m gauge; Italian Railways (FS)
operates 16,014 km of the total standard gauge routes (11,322 km
electrified)

narrow gauge: 112 km 1.000-m gauge (112 km electrified); 1,211 km
0.950-m gauge (153 km electrified) (1998)

Highways: total: 654,676 km

paved: 654,676 km (including 6