Key facts
- ISTAT cut Italy's 2026 GDP growth forecast to 0.7%.
- The previous forecast was 0.8%.
- ISTAT estimates the average jobless rate at 5.5% for 2026.
- This is down from a 6.1% estimate in December.
- The Italian government cut its growth outlook to 0.6% for 2026 and 2027.
- Italian GDP grew by 0.5% in 2025.
Italy's national statistics bureau, ISTAT, has revised its economic outlook, lowering the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast for 2026 to 0.7%. This represents a reduction from the previously anticipated 0.8% growth. Concurrently, ISTAT has estimated that the average unemployment rate for the year will stand at 5.5%. This figure is an improvement compared to the bureau's December estimate of 6.1% for the jobless rate. ISTAT also projected that Italy's economy would expand by 0.7% in 2027, with the jobless rate remaining at 5.5%. The Italian government, led by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, had previously cut its own growth outlook to 0.6% for both 2026 and 2027, citing rising energy prices and Middle East tensions. Italian GDP grew by 0.5% in 2025, marking the third consecutive year of growth below 1%.