hats and luxury apparel. By the 19th century, a later variant, “millinery”, had come to mean one who made or sold hats. The industrial revolution in Northern Europe gave a new prominence to the north area of Milan. It sat on the trade route for goods coming over the Alps, and built mills powered by water from the many rivers and streams. In the mid-19th century cheaper silk began to be imported from Asia and the pest phylloxera damaged silk and wine production. More land was subsequently given over to industrialisation. Textile production was followed by metal and mechanical and furniture manufacture.
Today Milan is a European and world fashion centre, where the sector can count on 12,000 companies, 800 show rooms, and 6,000 sales outlets, while four weeks are dedicated to top shows and other events. Publishing and media are represented by 700 book publishers, national newspapers and magazines and the recording studios of the national broadcaster RAI and the largest
Other key sectors in the city's economy are advanced research in health and biotechnologies, chemicals and engineering, banking and finance. Milan is the home to Italy's main banking groups (198 companies) and over forty foreign banks. The Associazione Bancaria Italiana representing the Italian banking system and Milan Stock Exchange (225 companies listed on the stock exchange) are both located in the city. The city can boast one of Europe's largest trade fair systems of over 1,600,000 sq.m. About 4.5 million visitors flock to the around 75 major events every year from all over the world as well as to the high-tech conference centres. It is also a leader in the third sector of non-profit organisations with 6,000 bodies in the greater Milan area.
Tourism is also an important part of the city's industry. While Euromonitor International have estimated that there were 1.894 million international arrivals in 2009, the Milan Chamber of Commerce estimates that there were over 5.5
