The seasonally adjusted merchandise trade balance was in a €5.6 billion surplus in March following a larger revised €3.5 billion in February.

However, the headline improvement masked a contraction in both sides of the balance sheet. Exports declined 2.3 percent on the month, their first fall in 2023, while imports were down a further 6.5 percent, extending the unbroken sequence of declines that began in September 2022. The drop in exports was largely due to energy, which saw a 22.1 percent slump and is now an unadjusted 24.3 percent lower on the year, and consumer goods, which were off 4.6 percent. Intermediates (minus 0.8 percent) also lost a little ground but capital goods (1.8 percent) strengthened.

The March data put the first quarter balance at €11.4 billion, its best outturn since the second quarter of 2021 but wholly attributable to an 8.0 percent drop in imports exports were only flat.

The merchandise trade balance measures the difference between imports and exports of goods. The level of the international trade balance, as well as changes in exports and imports, indicate trends in foreign trade and can offer a guide to an economy's competitiveness.

Changes in the level of imports and exports, along with the difference between the two (the trade balance) are a valuable gauge of economic trends here and abroad. While these trade figures can directly impact all financial markets, they primarily affect currency values in foreign exchange markets.

Separate reports are published for external and internal EU trade. The extra-EU trade data are compiled on the basis of customs declarations with non-EU countries. The intra-EU trade data (Intrastat) are derived from surveys and provide statistics on trade between Italy and other EU member states. The data are available monthly. World trade data are available within one month after the reference month while intra-EU trade data are available within 7 weeks after the reference month.