Extra-EU imports in August: +17.2%, from China +16%

TUESDAY, 29 SEPTEMBER 2026

Istat's August data: imports from India, OPEC and China grow, the United States, Turkey and ASEAN fall. Non-durable consumer goods drop 24.6%.

Italy's extra-EU imports in August 2026 rose 17.2% compared with the same month of 2025, and imports from China by 16.0%. That is what Istat's data on trade with non-EU countries, released at the end of September, show: in the same month exports to these markets rose 16.1% year on year, with a trade surplus of 2 billion euros.

Istat's figures for August

Annual changes are calculated on raw data, monthly ones on seasonally adjusted data, and they tell two different stories. Month on month August is flat for imports (-0.1% on July) and down for exports (-2.1%); year on year both flows grow by double digits. In the June-August quarter, compared with the previous quarter, exports slip 0.2% and imports rise 1.5%.

• Extra-EU imports: +17.2% on August 2025, -0.1% on July 2026.
• Imports from China: +16.0% year on year; exports to China: +32.3%.
• Imports of non-durable consumer goods: -24.6% year on year and -20.8% on July, the only group in decline.
• Energy imports: +41.4% year on year; energy deficit of 4,808 million euros.
• Extra-EU trade surplus: 2,000 million euros, with a surplus of 6,809 million excluding energy.

Where Italy's extra-EU imports come from

Annual import growth concerns all main groups except non-durable consumer goods, and is strongest for energy. Among supplier countries, India (+116.5%), OPEC countries (+54.6%) and Mercosur (+39.2%) stand out; China grows 16.0%. Purchases from the United Kingdom (-13.1%), the United States (-11.1%), Turkey (-9.0%) and ASEAN countries (-5.7%) fall instead.

On the sales side, exports to Switzerland rise 57.0%, to China 32.3% and to the United States 31.1%, while those to the United Kingdom fall 2.1%.

What the data says and does not say

These are values in euros, not quantities. A 16% rise in imports from China measures how much Italy spent buying Chinese goods in August, not how many pieces or containers arrived: prices, the exchange rate and the product mix all weigh on that value. Likewise, the jump from India may depend on a few high-value items, and the source does not say which.

The fall in non-durable consumer goods should be read with the same caution. In Istat's classification the group combines very different products, from food to clothing to pharmaceuticals, and a -24.6% in a single month may reflect shipments concentrated in a different period of the year. It is a figure to watch in the coming months, not a proven trend.

What it means for importers

The data does not show that buying in China has become more expensive or easier, but it signals that China remains a growing channel for Italian companies, in a month when purchases from the United States, Turkey and Southeast Asia fell. For those considering moving suppliers to alternative countries, it is worth comparing total landed costs, not just the factory price: August's figures alone do not show a shift under way from China to ASEAN.

In practical terms, the aggregate figure shows the direction, not your own case. Values by single product and country can be consulted in Istat's foreign trade databases: comparing the trend for your own customs code with the market's helps tell whether a price increase proposed by a supplier is in line with the rest of imports or should be negotiated.

With La Merce, those considering moving purchases from China to Southeast Asia start from the landed cost per customs code, because in August imports from China rose 16% while those from ASEAN countries fell 5.7%.

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