The Decline of Italy's Economy

Since the financial crisis, Italy has struggled to kick-start its growth and is lagging behind its European neighbors. Over the last decade, Italy has often been pinpointed as the "sick man in Europe," a vulnerable economy that is a risk to the European Union's financial stability.

Still today, a series of disappointing numbers are alerting analysts to the fact that Italy's vulnerability might be increasing. The country's government recently cut its growth forecast for the year from 1% to 0.2%.

Eurostat recently confirmed that Italy's public debt has reversed its declining trend and has grown almost 1% in 2018, reaching 132.2% of gross domestic product (GDP). In total numbers, Italy's public debt is the EU's highest, and with the meager growth forecasted for this year, it is expected to rise.