The Italian Ministry of Economic Development has recently published the list of strategic trade fairs for Italian economy. These events will be entitled to receive funds from the "Made in Italy" financing plan included in the state budget law (now Stability Act in Italy)

The biennial exhibition of woodworking technology and furniture industry supplies − celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary from Tuesday 24 to Saturday 28, May 2016, in the Fieramilano-Rho expo center − has been recognized as an “industrial policy vehicle” that benefits the industry. As such, it has been included in the short list of “top-32 exhibitions” considered as events of primary importance, not only for their role to the benefit of made-in-Italy and Italian enterprise globalization, but also because they are excellent showcases on a global scale, places where exhibitors and visitors from all over the world meet and interact, generating value for the global supply chain.

“We have been working hard for this recognition, which acknowledges the supremacy of Xylexpo among Italian industry events”, said Dario Corbetta, exhibition director, with great satisfaction. “We have experienced very difficult years, not only for the economic situation – he added – and we believe that this decision by the Italian government sets a new starting point, around which we should gather the collaboration and support of all stakeholders, so that the world of wood technology can achieve greater and greater results”.

The government’s measure allots funds in excess of 40 million Euros, spanning the 2015-2017 period; with these funds, organizers shall deploy events and promotion initiatives to increase Italian export and to strengthen the role of the selected exhibitions as reference for global demand and supply.

“This is also a sign of the support from public institutions to wood technology”, Corbetta added. “Their attention, through this new measure, shows their determination to clear up the exhibition scenario, often affected by rivalry and overlapping events, and their strong commitment to an industry that export more than 80 percent of its 1.6 billion Euro production, representing as much as 5 percent of the active part of the Italian trade balance. It’s an excellence of made-in-Italy in which we should invest with confidence”.