(ANSA) - Rome, September 17 - Industrial employers confederation Confindustria said Thursday that it has raised its gross domestic product (GDP) forecasts, predicting growth of 1% this year and 1.5% in 2016, up from its June forecasts of 0.8% and 1.4% respectively. The confederation's research wing refereed to "two years of recovery" after a long recession and said that the economic outlook had "changed during the summer" and become "more favourable".
Confindustria said that it expects Italy's unemployment rate to average 12.2% this year and drop to 11.8% in 2016.
In June the confederation had predicted an unemployment rate of 12.3% in 2015 and 12% in 2016.