Europe | The angel of the north

Italy’s second city shows up the rest of the country

Once dismissed for its dullness, Milan is booming

|MILAN

MARIATERESA GIUSSANI lives in Seregno, 28km (17 miles) outside Milan, and drives to work in the central fashion district where the company she owns, which markets school uniforms, has its offices. “Ten years ago I would leave at 7.15am to avoid the traffic,” she says. “Now, I have to be out by 6.15am. If I leave ten minutes later, it’s nose-to-tail all the way.”

Ms Giussani’s altered morning schedule is among the myriad side effects of a boom that has set Milan apart from the rest of Italy, still struggling to recover from the financial crisis of a decade ago, and at best plodding along on the edge of recession.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline "The angel of the north"

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