Catalan exports in June grow by 0.1% while Spain's drop by 1.2%

Exports from Catalonia between January and June 2014 reached €29,769.5 million, which represent a 1.8% increase compared to the same period last year. They also represented 24.9% of Spain's total exports, which reached €119,265 million, a 0.5% growth on the previous year's figures. However, despite growing at a slower pace, Spain's total exports posted a new historical record since comparable figures started to be registered in 1971. Considering just the June figures, the export sector seemed to be affected by the negative economic figures from France and Germany. Catalan exports only grew by 0.1% in June compared to the figures registered in the same month of 2013, while Spain's total exports during the first sixth months of the year decreased by 1.2%.

Container Terminal 'BEST' in Barcelona's Port (by ACN)
Container Terminal 'BEST' in Barcelona's Port (by ACN) / ACN

ACN

August 19, 2014 08:18 PM

Barcelona (ACN).- Exports from Catalonia between January and June 2014 reached €29,769.5 million, which represents a 1.8% increase compared to the same period last year, according to figures from the Spanish Ministry of the Economy and Competitiveness. Exports from Catalan companies also represented 24.9% of Spain's total, which reached €119,265 million, a 0.5% growth on the previous year's figures. However, despite growing at a slower pace, Spain's total exports posted a new historical record since comparable figures started to be registered in 1971. Considering just the June figures, the export sector seemed to be affected by the negative economic figures from France and Germany. Catalan exports only grew by 0.1% in June compared to the figures registered in the same month of 2013, while Spain's total exports during the first sixth months of the year decreased by 1.2%. Catalonia's main exporting sectors were the chemical industry (€8 billion, +1.7%), capital goods (€5.31 billion, +3.7%) and the car industry (€4.74 billion, +6.8%).


Catalonia's trade deficit rockets by 55%

While exports increased by 1.8% in the first semester of 2014 in Catalonia, imports grew by 8%, reaching a total of €35,731 million. Therefore, Catalonia's trade deficit reached 5,961 million, a 55% growth compared to 2013 figures. Imports are growing fast since Catalonia's internal demand is recovering from the economic crisis, while Catalan companies are also importing commodities to manufacture their own products. Furthermore, with the economic downturn in many European Union countries – which are Catalonia's main market – many manufactured products are not sold at the expected pace. As a consequence, the trade deficit is growing.

Considering just the June figures, Catalonia imported products worth € 5,923 million, a 7.9% increase on figures from the previous year. Since Catalan companies sold €4,913 million abroad in June, the trade deficit reached €1,010 million.

Spain's trade deficit grows by 104%

In the whole of Spain, the difference between exports and imports registered during the first semester of 2014 reached €11,842 million. This represents a 104% growth on 2013 figures, when there was a €5.824 million trade deficit.

Exports from all Catalan Provinces grow except those from Tarragona

Exports have increased in all four Catalan Provinces except Tarragona, in Southern Catalonia. Most of the Catalonian chemical industry is based there and it is by far the highest exporting sector in this province. In the first 6 months of the year, Tarragona companies exported €3.47 billion, a 4.9% drop on the same period of the previous year. In June, they exported €506 million, a 9.7% drop.

In Barcelona Province, where two thirds of the Catalan population lives, exports in the first semester reached €23.36 billion, a 2.7% increase on the previous year. In June, they exported €3.88 billion, a 0.7% growth. In the Province of Girona (north-eastern Catalonia), sales abroad increased by 3.7% in the first semester (€2.21 billion) and grew by 6% in June (€372 million). Finally, in Lleida Province (western Catalonia), which has an international sector very much linked to the agri-food industry, sales abroad went up by 2.2% in the first six months of 2014 (€725 million), while they increased by 5.2% in June (€155 million).