Italy's Reaction to Obama Victory

It was very interesting to be on this side of the world taking in the reaction of Italians on the Obama victory. There were no festivities in the streets as we saw in the United States but the general concensus I think was a positive sigh of relief. The feeling has been that when the USA is sick, the world suffers the consequences. Italians are waiting for change.

The economic crisis is blatant all across the world and Italy has been in an economic mess for some time now. Unemployment is at an all time high, productivity and consumer spending are at an all time low. Many industries have been directly affected by the American financial crisis and specifically by the weak dollar. Tourism has been down for some time now and Americans admit that although they would love to visit the bel paese, it has just gotten too expensive. They opt for other countries or to stay at home. The Italian food, clothing, footwear industries are really suffering too. Exports have been down due to the weak dollar.

With this said, Italians are waiting for the recession to turn around in the USA so that they too can begin to benifit from a stronger America. All eyes are on the United States right now to turn things around. Italians like everyone are hoping it will be sooner rather than later but who knows?