The Effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the Italian Economic System: the Factors Underlying the Resilience of the Lombard Manufacturing Sector

Italy was the first country in the western world to be officially hit by the pandemic in February 2020. Government interventions aimed at regulating the necessary lockdowns and restrictions of social behavior initially blocked all productive activities, except for activities relating to essential goods and services, with a particularly significant impact in sectors related to people’s free time and social life. As is well known, this has had evident negative repercussions on the gross domestic product (GDP), above all on companies and sectors already in difficulty before the pandemic; on the disposable income of people employed in companies blocked by the measures; and, therefore, on the general levels of consumption. In this context, the Lombard manufacturing sector, the engine of the Italian economy, has shown a great capacity for resilience. The paper focuses on the factors underlying the effective response to the crisis, as they most likely represent the same elements that can allow or accelerate the post-Covid regrowth.