• Istat: GDP estimate in 2019 + 0.2%, for 2020 at + 0.6%
  • Work, Istat: + 46 thousand employed in October, + 217 thousand in the year
  • Istat: down consumer confidence in November, worse from 2017

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05 December 2019In 2017, the average net income of Italian households (€ 31,393 per year) is still growing both in nominal terms (+ 2.6%) and in purchasing power (+ 1.2%). Istat explains this, however, explaining that "inequality is not reduced" with the total income of the wealthiest families that "continues to be more than six times that of the poorest families". The percentage of population at risk of poverty or social exclusion decreases (from 28.9% to 27.3%) due to a lower incidence of situations of severe material deprivation. The percentage of individuals at risk of poverty remains at 20.3%.

Household income still under 8.8% compared to 2007
Despite the growth recorded in 2017, the overall contraction in incomes compared to 2007, the year preceding the economic crisis, still remains significant, with a loss in real terms equal to 8.8% on average for family income. According to Istat in the South, the average income level is lower by 11.9%, in the Center by 11%, by 6.7% in the North-west and by 6% in the North-east. the decrease in household incomes in real terms is higher for larger families, while it is much lower for families with two components (-1.8%).

Tax wedge still above 45%
In 2017, labor costs reach an average of € 31,783. The net remuneration that remains available to the worker represents just over half of the total labor cost (54.4% equal to 17,277 euros), while the remaining 45.6% (14,506 euros) constitutes the tax and contribution wedge, that is, the sum of the personal tax on employment income and the social contributions of the worker and the employer. We read in the report on the 'Living conditions, income and tax burden of families' for 2018. The cost of labor, which is the sum of the gross salaries of workers and social contributions paid by employers, in 2017 shows a reduction compared to the previous year (-1.2%), due to the decrease in the employer's contribution (-1.8%) with a consequent reduction in the tax and contribution wedge (-1.4%).

In the South, the percentage of those at risk of poverty increases
Also in 2018, the incidence of the risk of poverty or social exclusion is higher among individuals of couples' families with three or more children (36.0%), despite a significant improvement compared to last year (41.1%) and in the single-parent ones (35.4%; 38.8% in 2017). Compared to the previous year, there is a reduction in the risk of poverty or social exclusion of all family types except for couples with two children, for whom it has increased from 26.5% in 2017 to 28.3% in 2018. In particular, there are more marked signs of improvement among individuals in families of couples with three or more children, of single parents and for single people and in particular, among the latter, when the reference person is under 65 (from 36.2% to 31.7%). This improvement is associated with a decrease in severe material deprivation for individuals of single-parent families and people living alone, while individuals living in families of couples with three or more children experience a significant reduction in the risk of poverty (from 33 , 9% to 30.8%).