One of Italy's most prominent business leaders on Monday painted a stark picture of the state of the Italian economy, saying it ranked at the bottom of the European league in everything from investment to productivity and the slowness of civil justice.

Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, the chairman of Confindustria, Italy's employers' group, called on industrialists and small businessmen as well as the centre-right government to play their part in reviving the stagnant economy.