The principal exports of Italy are to Swit zerland, which buys from her over $32,000,000 worth of raw silk in bulk, and to European Turkey and Egypt where the excess of her ex ports is owing to cotton and silk textiles, which Italy sells to those countries. In conclusion the excess of exports from Italy to the Argentine Republic is owing to wine, olive oil, and cotton textiles, which she sells to that state.
We shall now consider the effect of the at tempt that Italy is making to find fresh markets for her products. We have already seen that she has increased her exports to Egypt and Ar gentina to the amount of from $2,800,000 to $9,200,000 in the former, and from $11,400,000 to $25,800,000 in the latter instance, and we ob serve the export movement toward Belgium, European Turkey, Sweden, Norway, Greece and Malta.
This brief summary of the foreign com merce of Italy will now be completed by a few figures relating to the trade in precious metals. Although we know that the proposed customs duties are more unsettled than ever and that they do not represent commercial value or ex change we simply give the figures relating to the imports and exports of raw gold, gold and silver coin. in 10 years. 1896-1905. The
table will show that Italy is slowly gaining in wealth: Imports Exports (Millions of lire) 1896 10.2 19.0 1.897 8.6 23.6 1898 3.4 19.8 1899 5.5 13.9 1900 7.2 16.5 1901 11.7 16.3 1902 34.7 9.9 1903 136.7 6.7 1904 44.5 9.7 1905 169.5 8.2 1916 8.390. 3.088.
In 1915 the United States imported from Italy goods valued at $54,973,726, while Italy imported from the United States goods valued at $184,819,683, or between two and three times as much as in any one of the three years immediately preceding.
4 Movimento commerciale del Reguo d'Italia.' Annual publication by the Finance Department '(Bureau of General Cus toms Duties) ; Statistic° del commercio specials d'importazione ed esportazione (monthly pub lication by the same department) ; Stnngher, B. (Su la bilancia dei pagamenti fra l'Italia e in Atti della Commissions Reale per to studio delle statistiche del commercio con festero.