Tariffs, Panetta: ‘Despite tariffs in 2025, global trade reorganisation +4%’

Venice, 21 February (LaPresse) – ‘Global trade’ has undergone a ‘reorganisation, not a ’contraction”. This was stated by the Governor of the Bank of Italy, Fabio Panetta, at the 32nd Assiom Forex Congress on “Trade and finance in a fragmented world”, currently underway in Venice. Despite the introduction of tariffs, international trade grew by 4 per cent in 2025, outpacing global GDP growth and doubling expectations. This was helped by the application of lower tariffs than initially announced and the absence of widespread retaliation, which mitigated the effects on global demand. More than half of the expansion is attributable to the sharp increase in trade related to artificial intelligence,‘ says Panetta. ’Exemptions granted to specific sectors and products contributed to reducing tariffs, lowering the effective rate from 20 to 16 per cent. The rate on border collections is even lower (11 per cent). The duties actually collected are lower than expected, mainly due to the recomposition of US imports by product and country of origin, the difficulty of adjusting customs procedures, and legal issues regarding the application of measures and exemptions. In the United States, the goods trade deficit as a percentage of GDP remained largely unchanged, with factors continuing to support import growth,” he adds.