Substantial merit for this result must be given to millions of Italian migrants: their savings, sent home, allowed the country to pay for the machinery needed to modernize the industry. After Second World War, Italy, in a new democratic political environment, started reconstruction.
A burst of hyper-inflation was successfully extinguished in 1947, which allowed entrepreneurs, workers and consumers to focus on re-building the real economy. Italian politicians understood that the future of the country was laying in its ability to thrive in a larger community. The decision to join the European Community in 1957 allowed Italian exports to expand at a dramatic pace.