Bank of Italy’s Panetta Calls to Rework Global Trade, Pushes Bilateral Pacts and an EU Common Bond

He says an AI-driven cycle kept trade growing in 2025, validating a shift toward targeted agreements.

Overview

Speaking at the 32nd Assiom Forex congress in Venice on Feb. 21, Panetta urged resisting fragmentation by expanding bilateral and plurilateral trade accords, praising recent EU deals with Mercosur and India.
He reported that in 2025 world GDP rose 3.3% and global trade increased 4%, both stronger than forecast a year earlier.
He attributed trade resilience to four forces: applied tariffs lower than announced, no broad retaliations, AI-related exchanges, and a geographic reshaping of flows including China redirecting exports.
He called for investment in education and human capital so AI-powered innovation delivers widespread productivity gains while addressing its social impacts.
He pressed for deeper EU financial integration, including a common European sovereign bond, and urged solid banks to finance deserving, innovative firms rather than lean into excessive caution.