Growth in top-quality and high added value services has turned Milan into a centre of attraction for northern Italy in terms of advanced services, while the finance business is Italy's gateway to the world.

Services to business are expanding faster than services to commerce and personal services. In particular, transport, financial services, real estate, rentals and IT are growing by 2.4% a year, while personal services are up by only 1.4%.

In the financial sector, both banks and insurance companies are lagging behind, while other forms of financial brokerage are booming.

The world of commerce is fairly stable, with strong signs of innovation from the most modern segments of large-scale retail and specialized distribution.