Covid has brought the Italian economy to its knees, but not the wealth of families which at the end of 2020 rose to 10,010 billion euros, 8.7 times their disposable income, registering a growth of 1%, about 100 billion, compared to 2019.
This is what emerges from the Bankitalia-Istat data according to which the house remains the main form of investment for families, representing almost half of gross wealth, for a value of 5,163 billion. Financial assets reached 4,800 billion, up on 2019 mainly due to the increase in deposits and insurance reserves. Total household liabilities remained almost stable at 967 billion.
The net wealth of non-financial companies at the end of 2020 amounted to € 1,053 billion. Total assets in the sector amount to 4,934 billion, 60% of which are non-financial assets. The financial component, equal to 1,965 billion, recorded an increase compared to 2019, mainly thanks to the increase in deposits. In the same period – we read -, however, the value of real assets decreased, mainly represented by non-residential properties and plant and machinery. Financial liabilities fell slightly, keeping Italian companies among the least indebted in international comparison.
Financial companies have net wealth of 739 billion euros in 2020, mainly originating from the balance between financial assets and liabilities. Gross wealth grew by around 8%, mainly due to the increase in deposits and securities. In the case of financial liabilities, the increase was driven by insurance reserves and the collection of deposits. The net wealth of public administrations at the end of 2020 was negative for 1,473 billion euros (about -90% of GDP). Non-financial assets and financial assets, equal to 1,047 billion and 612 billion respectively, were in fact lower than financial liabilities (3,133 billion). Similar values of the ratio between net wealth and GDP were also observed for the United Kingdom.