Buy & trade Italian shares
From Amplifon to Unicredit... our guide to investing in the Italian market
Please remember, investment value can go up or down and you could get back less than you invest. The value of international investments may be affected by currency fluctuations which might reduce their value in sterling.
Why invest in Italian shares?
Italy has one of the world’s largest economies, but its stock market has been heavily influenced by a history of high levels of debt, not helped by the impact on growth of past political instability and a carousel of prime ministers and governments.
However, this has not held the market back in recent years as performance has largely been in line with the rest of Europe. You can see this by looking at the country’s benchmark index, the FTSE MIB, which tracks the performance of 40 of the biggest and most liquid companies on the exchange. This is because many companies within the index are multinational, generating a significant percentage of their revenue overseas.
As with other international stock markets, there are companies listed in Italy that offer valuable diversification. Car lovers and motorsport fans will be familiar with supercar company Ferrari and premium tyre manufacturer Pirelli. Oil giant Eni Group is one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, and oilfield services business Saipem is another world-beater. Elsewhere, investors can choose from banking giants like Unicredit, insurers such as Generali and luxury fashion brands, including Moncler and Salvatore Ferragamo.
About the Italian Stock Exchange
The Milan Stock Exchange traces its origins back to 1808 and, while other regional exchanges have come and gone, Milan remains and is now the Italian stock exchange, or Borsa Italiana. It was owned by the London Stock Exchange Group between 2007 and 2021 before it was sold to Euronext for €4.4 billion.
The FTSE MIB 40 is the main Italian stock index consisting of 40 of the largest companies on the Italian Stock Exchange. Some of the companies include Banca Mediolanum, Enel, Exor, Mediobanca, Ferrari, Campari and Amplifon.
The Italian Stock Exchange is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 5:30 pm Central European Time (8:00 am to 4:30 pm GMT).
How to buy Italian shares with ii
To buy Italian shares with ii, you will need to first open an account.
From your account, simply select ‘trade now’ and ‘international’ to search for the shares you want to invest in. You will be prompted at this point to sign Exchange Agreements – this lets you access live international share pricing.
Most popular Italian shares
Below is a preview of the most purchased shares by ii customers over recent months.
Most purchased shares in H2 2023
Source: interactive investor. Note: the top 10 is based on the number of “buys” between 1 July and 31 December 2023.
Fees and charges
- Our subscription plans start from £4.99 a month, which includes our Stocks and Shares ISA and Trading Account
- If you are on our £11.99 a month Investor plan, we give you a £3.99 free trade credit every month – which can be used the cost of buying and selling towards international shares.
- Additional non-US international trades cost £9.99.
- Frequent traders can get reduced rates on non-US international shares with our Super Investor service plan.
- There is a foreign exchange fee of 1.5% when you trade in pounds. This is reduced for transactions over £25,000. You can avoid paying this fee every time you trade by holding foreign currency in your account. Learn more
Additional charges for trading Italian shares
- Financial transaction tax: 0.10%
News and insights
Please remember: The value of your investments, and the income derived from them, may go down as well as up. You may not get back all the money that you invest. The value of international investments may be affected by currency fluctuations which might reduce their value in sterling. We may receive two elements of commission in relation to international dealing - Trading Commission and our FX Charge. Please see our rates and charges for full details of the relevant costs. Foreign markets will involve different risks from the UK markets. In some cases the risks will be greater.