Calabria confirms itself as a periphery of the Italian economy, bringing with it a baggage of structural fragilities. A transit that is intertwined with the difficulties of the country which, as a whole, between the energy crisis and global tensions, sees the historical pillars of its development model cracking. And the region finds itself crossed by even deeper tensions, aggravated by an unstoppable demographic regression which also inspires the significant reduction of business owners with the erosion of the middle class. Negative dynamics that are slowly but inexorably changing the history and social and economic geography of this land.
Doing business here costs more, even on the credit front. In June 2026, the effective annual interest rate on loans reached 6.87%, the highest value in Italy, against a national average of 5.01%. Almost two percentage points of difference which becomes a burden especially for small companies, often without the guarantees and financial solidity necessary to obtain better conditions. The 21st annual report of Confartigianato documents the growing difficulties in accessing credit for the production system.
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