Trade between the UAE and Italy won’t return to pre-Covid levels until the end of next year, according to the Italian Ambassador to the country, Nicola Lener.

“We’re hoping it will go back fast,” Lener, pictured below, told Arabian Business.

In 2019 Italian exports to the UAE totalled 4.6 billion Euros, making it the country’s 21st most important market.

In terms of the trade balance – the difference between the nation’s exports and imports - it is 3.7 billion Euros in favour of Italy, which is equal to about 80 percent of Italy’s trade surplus with the GCC countries and about seven percent of the country’s overall surplus owrldwide.

“It’s remarkable for a small country like the UAE to be the origin of roughly seven percent of our global trade surplus,” said Lener.

Italy was hit particularly hard at the outset of the coronavirus, with the country reporting as many as 4,500 new cases on a daily basis.

However, strict lockdowns have since reduced the spread of the virus to roughly 1,500 new infections per day – schools in Italy only began reopening on September 14, with many still closed, while the Italian government only relaxed a total ban on spectators at sporting events on Friday, allowing up to 1,000 fans per game.

Still, Italy, which has committed to a pavilion at Dubai's Expo event when it finally takes place next year, expects its coronavirus-hit economy to grow by more than five percent next year after shrinking nine percent in 2020, two government sources told Reuters on Sunday.

Lener said: “Overall, generally speaking, we think that the exports will be at the same level as 2019 at the end of next year, 2021. I think in this part of the world, especially the UAE, I think we can go back to the previous amount of our trade exchange.

“We are confident with the gradual phasing out of these emergency situations and the resumption of normal flows.”

He revealed that machinery and jewellery are the main exports from Italy to the UAE, followed by food and consumption goods, fashion and furniture.

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), Italy is expected to lose €36.7bn due to the international travel crisis in 2020 caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The report revealed that international spending in the European country could drop by 82 percent by the end of this year.

Lener said the country is currently in the process of redefining its tourism offering, looking at a more tailor-made, customised provision for visitors, particularly from the UAE and wider Middle East region.

“Our Emirati friends are looking for culture in Italy, they’re looking for the quality of life and they are also looking to first class health facilities,” he said.

“We know the customers from this area have the purchasing power and they are demanding, quite rightly; they demand first class services, they often come with big families, so we must be more and more equipped to receive them.”