Businesses in Emilia-Romagna continue to invest, but in 2026 they are easing off the accelerator. After committing €690 million in 2025, plans for this year stop at..com Businesses in Emilia-Romagna continue to invest, but in 2026 they are easing off the accelerator. After committing €690 million in 2025, plans for this year total €611 million, down 11%.

This is not a retreat, but a measured slowdown: companies are not giving up on innovation, but are becoming more selective, postponing some projects and assessing risk more carefully. This is the central message of Confindustria Emilia-Romagna’s annual survey, based on 329 companies with combined revenue of €17.7 billion. There are two other key points: last year, investments absorbed an average of 4.9% of revenue, slightly below the 5.3% recorded in 2024; in 2026, 86% of companies will continue to invest.

The most significant indicators to have emerged so far point to growth and investment, with the cited figure amounting to €690 million. For companies, the issue is not only volume growth: the quality of revenue, the resilience of the customer portfolio and the sustainability of the net margin in the next quarter also matter. In the short term, commercial execution remains the decisive lever: entry timing, channels and market selection could determine the difference between expansion and margin compression.

This is the central message of Confindustria Emilia-Romagna’s annual survey, based on 329 companies with combined revenue of €17.7 billion. There are two other key points: last year, investments absorbed an average of 4.9% of revenue, slightly below the 5.3% recorded in 2024; in 2026, 86% of companies will continue to invest. “Against this backdrop, Emilia-Romagna companies continue to invest to strengthen their competitiveness,” Riccardo Fava said in his first public appearance as regional president of the industrialists’ association. He will be joined by Enrico Aureli and Nicola Parenti as vice presidents, who were presented yesterday.

Returning to the figures, the decline in amounts budgeted for 2026 reflects widely varying situations. Small businesses are increasing investment by 6%, almost compelled by their very nature not to interrupt the renewal process. Medium-sized companies are pulling back, while large companies are cutting spending by 18%.

However, the figure should be interpreted with caution: large groups do not carry out exceptional transactions every year, and their investment cycles are more uneven. Signals from the most exposed sectors are also weighing on the outlook.