Investing in Treviso and Belluno: the main structural data of the two provinces

Article by Dr. Renato Chahinian

After the first general indications on the factors of attractiveness for sustainable investments in Treviso and Belluno, it is useful to present in this section a concise socio-economic picture of the area, in order to better assess the environmental context in which future investments would be placed, which, as has been observed, envisage parallel benefits, both for the local economy and for those who contribute the necessary capital.

The main data for the two Veneto provinces are also present in the Economics Section of this same Portal, but are extended and commented on here, in light of the cognitive needs of potential investors. These data, published by the Study and Statistics Office of the Chamber of Commerce, mostly refer to 2022, as not all surveys at territorial level are currently available for 2023, but the structural magnitudes presented are sufficiently significant and in any case the most relevant updates will be reported below.

The territorial economic structure

First of all, the added value, which represents the value of wealth produced in one year, in 2021[1] was 26,731 million euro for the province of Treviso and 6,178 million euro for the province of Belluno. Globally, therefore, it is a value of almost 33 billion, equal to 22% of the Veneto figure and 2% of the national one.

The added value of the province of Treviso is divided into:

• 747 million (2.8% of the total) produced by agriculture;
• 930 million (33.4%) produced by industry in the strict sense;
• 566 million (5.9%) produced by the construction sector;
• 488 million (57.9%) produced by services.

The added value of the province of Belluno, on the other hand, breaks down as follows:

• 88 million (1.4%) produced by agriculture:
• 778 million (28.8%) produced by industry in the strict sense;
• 316 million (5.1%) produced by the construction sector;
• 995 million (64.7%) produced by services.

So, although tertiary economic activities are preponderant in both provinces, in the Treviso one industrial activities are also very present (for about one third), which, together with construction activities, reach almost 40% of the total.

The local business units (headquarters + branches) reached a total of 116,657 at the end of 2022, which corresponds to almost 22% of the regional units and almost 2% of the national ones.

The number of employees in the production system, again at an aggregate level, was 411,928 on the same date, i.e. still 22% of the regional figure and about 2% of the national figure.

In terms of both added value and employees, these are the highest figures in Veneto, coordinated by a single Chamber of Commerce.

Examining the economic fabric of each province, we find that

in Treviso there are 79,489 business premises and 18,882 dependent branches, for a total of 98,371 locations and 337,422 employees;
in Belluno there are 13,738 business premises and 4,548 dependent branches, for a total of 18,286 locations and 74,506 employees.

Employees in the Treviso territory are divided into the following activities:

• 4.8% in agriculture;
• 36.3% in manufacturing activities;
• 8.2% in constructions;
• 15.3% in trade;
• 6.7% in accommodation and catering;
• 21.0% in business services;
• 6.4% in personal services.

Employees in the Belluno area work in the following activities:

• 3.2% in agriculture;
• 37.1% in manufacturing;
• 8.2% in construction;
• 13.6% in commerce;
• 13.1% in accommodation and catering;
• 17.4% in business services;
• 6.0% in personal services.

Thus, the biggest differences concern:

• a higher proportion of Treviso in business services, trade and agriculture;
• a higher proportion of Belluno in tourism;
• unexpectedly, a slightly higher percentage of Belluno in manufacturing, precisely because of the presence of a few large companies in a less populated and busy context.

It should be borne in mind that some manufacturing activities are grouped in limited areas and constitute true industrial districts, capable of creating cooperative synergies and ecosystems that are still developing at a territorial level.

Foreign Trade

Both provinces are strongly export-oriented.

In 2022 the overall territory achieved a value of exported goods and services of over 21 billion euros, second in the Veneto region only to Vicenza and fifth in the ranking of the whole country. Obviously, the province of Treviso alone ranks ninth with 16,464 million and the province of Belluno 46th with 4,966 million.

However, both provinces have a positive foreign trade balance: the former with a surplus of 6.5 billion and the latter with a surplus of 3.7 billion. This expresses the international competitiveness of the two areas and the significant currency contribution to the national balance of payments. Consequently, the eminently productive character of the area under consideration can also be affirmed, although local consumption may derive not only from imports from abroad, but also from production in other regions.

The main goods exported from the province of Treviso concern, in order: machinery, furniture, household appliances, footwear, textiles and clothing, beverages, etc..

The main destination countries are: Germany, France, United States, United Kingdom, Spain, Romania, Poland, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland, etc..

With regard to exports from the province of Belluno, the main goods are as follows: eyewear, machinery, textiles and clothing, electronics and medical and measuring equipment, etc..

The major destination countries are in order: the United States, France, Germany, Spain, China and Hong Kong, etc..

Tourism

Although the entire territory belonging to the two provinces is not coastal and therefore cannot benefit from the tourist attraction of the beaches, and although the two provincial capitals are not large, world-famous cities, the movement of tourists is remarkable.

The total number of tourist arrivals in 2022 was over 1.7 million, while daily presences exceeded 5 million.

In both provinces, Italian tourists prevail (although foreigners account for more than 40 per cent) and the accommodation of hotels is predominant.

But the two territories are distinguished by different types of guests. In Treviso (with over 736 thousand arrivals and 1 million 628 thousand presences), in fact, business tourism predominates (in relation to the economic relations of the productive fabric) and cultural tourism (for the historical-artistic attractions of the city and its surroundings), while more recently a considerable flow of visitors attentive to naturalistic and environmental beauties has developed (with the recognition of the Prosecco Hills as a UNESCO World Heritage Site). On the other hand, in Belluno (with 981 thousand arrivals and 3 million 398 thousand presences), there is a long-standing tradition of mountain holidays, now also reinforced by the aforementioned UNESCO with the world recognition of the natural landscape of the Dolomites. These elements of diversity thus result in an average stay per guest of 3.5 days in the province of Belluno and 2.2 days in the province of Treviso.

The population

The resident population in the whole territory exceeds one million inhabitants, but there is a significant difference between the two provinces, as that of Treviso is highly populated (876,115 residents), while that of Belluno has fewer inhabitants (197,751). This is due to the fact that the mountains are still an underdeveloped inland area (as is the case elsewhere) and therefore subject to progressive depopulation, although recently there are signs of trend reversal and new development opportunities linked to the area’s natural and human attractions.

The population structure in Treviso includes:

• 10.2% foreigners
• 50.6% females;
• the old age index (people over 65/individuals under 14) of 182.1.

In the province of Belluno, instead, there are:

• 6.1% foreigners
• 51.2% females;
• the old-age index of 254.7%.

Therefore:

• immigration is higher in Treviso to meet greater production needs;
• the female population is higher in Belluno, due to a higher male propensity to move to other more densely populated areas, in order to seize more job opportunities;
• the old-age index reaches exceptional limits in Belluno due to the considerable depopulation of mountain areas by the younger classes.

A final important aspect concerns the added value per capita, once considered the decisive economic element in assessing the well-being of a population, now compared with many other social and environmental indicators, but still indicative of a significant underlying economic level.

This quantity was found to be the following for 2021

• 510 euro in the province of Treviso;
• 241 euro in the province of Belluno.

Although the added value data are subject to some estimations, it is likely that in Belluno a smaller population shares the value of richer activities (such as tourism) and also obtained with substantial external labour inputs. In any case, both territories are well positioned in the national situation and it should also be noted that this magnitude, for the purposes of sustainable investment, should be placed in the social and environmental context that we have already described in the two previous articles.

[1] Territorial breakdowns of national value added require more processing time.