Business

3,621,777 passengers used Barcelona El Prat Airport's facilities this October, 7.5% more than in the same month last year. This figure sets a new record for El Prat, which is the second busiest airport in Spain, only beaten by Madrid Barajas. Most of the users whom passed through El Prat were international passengers, which registered a 9.1% increase compared to October 2014, while the number of national passengers rose to 3.3%. Regarding the number of operations, there were 25,349 flights in October, which represents 1% more than in the same month last year, and from January to October 248,358 operations were registered in El Prat. The number of flights to/from Latin America grew the most, by 47.5%, followed by those to/from North America (up 21%) and the Middle East (up 18.8%). Cargo transportation also grew, increasing by 15.3% and totalling 11,070 tons. In terms of cargo, routes from outside the EU saw the biggest growth, 30.6%. 

Catalonia promoted itself as a leading tourist destination at London World Travel Market, one of the most important global events for the travel industry. This year, Catalonia’s strategy focused on its selection as European Region of Gastronomy 2016, so that routes based on local food and wine have been designed to add value to Catalonia’s traditional attractions. “We must appreciate the gastronomic richness of our country” stated Delegate of the Catalan Government to the UK, Josep Manuel Suárez, who highlighted the Mediterranean diet as “fundamental”. Throughout the week, Catalonia’s stand will offer to the 50,000 visitors expected to attend the fair an image of the territory that goes beyond sun and beaches, promoting the Pyrenees region and cities with a relevant Roman heritage such as Tarragona. The aim is to diversify Catalonia’s tourism and to become a city break destination as well. 

The number of unemployed in Catalonia rose by 10,341 people in October and has now accumulated three months of increases. This figure represents a 2.02% increase compared to the previous month and the total is now 523,528 unemployed people in Catalonia, of whom only 54.2% were receiving some kind of benefit at the end of last month, according to the Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security. All the sectors, except for construction, have experienced a rise in the number of unemployed. The sector which saw the largest increase in the number of unemployed was services, with an increase of 8,891 people, the highest increase in this sector since October 2014. This trend is mainly due to the termination of many seasonal contracts. In the whole of Spain, unemployment increased by 82,327 people and totalled 4,176,369. Unemployment usually rises in October, as it represents the end of many seasonal contracts. This year's increase in the unemployment rate is the lightest registered since 2010. 

The number of jobless people in Catalonia at the end of the third quarter stood at 659,600, which means 66,500 less than in the same period last year. The 17.49% unemployment rate is the lowest in the last five years, according to the Active Population Survey (EPA) published this Thursday by the Spanish Institute of Statistics (INE). Catalonia is the Autonomous Community which led job creation in Spain:between July and September, 35,800 jobs were created, mainly in the service sector, due to seasonal contracts. In Spain as a whole, unemployment fell by nearly 300,000 people and 182,000 new jobs were created. The overall number of jobless people in Spain now stands at 4.8 million, a figure that hasn't been registered in the last four years and is below the 5 million  psychological barrier. 

From January to September this year, Barcelona's port transported 100,666 UTI, the transport unit which equals a lorry, a platform or a trailer. The highest increase was registered in those services connecting the Catalan capital with Italian destinations, in particular Genoa, Civitavecchia, Livorno, Savona and Porto Torres. The rest of the goods transportation corresponded to short sea shippings, which are the connections between Barcelona and the North of Africa, mainly Tangier. Exports from January to September were higher than imports, and grew by 9% in comparison to the same period last year.Vehicle transportation continued to grow and registered 18% growth in the first nine months of the year, and 10,000 lorries have been diverted from road to maritime routes, according to data published this Thursday by Port de Barcelona for January to September.

Catalonia posts a -0.5% annual inflation rate in September, the second consecutive negative figure this year. This decline is mainly caused by the fall in electricity and fuel prices, which has led to an annual decrease in housing (-3.5%) and transportation (-6.6%) prices. However, the sector which registered the highest drop in monthly terms was leisure, -3% in comparison to last September. On the other side, the price of clothing, education and medicine has increased this month, while food and non-alcoholic beverage prices remained steady. All the Autonomous Communities have seen a decrease in the annual inflation rate and in Spain as a whole prices have dropped by 0.9%. Catalonia is, together with the Basque Country, the Community with the second-smallest decrease in the annual inflation rate. 

The Catalan Government has created the first certification that “guarantees” the quality of 17 funding systems which aim to be an alternative to traditional banking. The public business innovation agency, ACCIÓ, has accredited the first 17, which are private investors’ networks, crowd-funding platforms, crowd-lending systems an invoice traders. According to the Catalan Business and Occupation department, this certification aims to promote and facilitate Small and Medium-sized Companies (‘PIMES’ in Catalan) and Catalan companies’ access to alternative funding systems, which are considered a key factor for innovation and internationalisation and are a growing trending in Europe.

“The EU expects that the Midcat will be built by 2020”, stated EU Commissioner for Energy and Climate Action, Miguel Arias Cañete. He made this statement this Monday during the ‘Natural gas and the energy security of Europe’ seminar, organised by Gas Natural Fenosa. The Midcat pipeline is set to be built through the Catalan Pyrenees, linking the Iberian Peninsula with French and Central European networks and aims to reduce Europe's dependency on Russian gas by 40%. According to Cañete the project has a budget of 470 million euros, from which 170 million will have to be paid by Spain. Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig “lamented” the delay in this strategic infrastructure and attributed it to “the lack of enthusiasm” of the French government.

This September 6,881 people lost their job, which raises the number of unemployed in Catalonia to 513,187. This figure represents the second month in a row with an increase in the unemployment rate, according to data published by the Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security. However, there are 62,625 less unemployed people than in September last year and there have been 27 consecutive months with a lower unemployment rate in comparison to 2014. The number of unemployed in the whole of Spain was 4,094,000 people.

Pro-independence parties have won an overall majority in the Catalan election. The main pro-independence coalition, ‘Junts pel Sí’ (‘Together for Yes’) obtained 39.6% of vote and won 62, while the far-left pro-independence CUP secured 10 members of parliament. Together, they have an overall majority of 72 MPs in the 135-seats Catalan Parliament. President Mas, who ran fourth on the list, highlighted the plebiscitary nature of the elections and demanded “respect” for “the victory of Catalonia, the victory of yes”. Turnout in the election has hit a record high, with 77.4%.

During the second trimester of 2015, foreign investment in Catalonia grew by some 422%, reaching €1,302 million. “We have grown more than ever and we have become a point of reference in Europe” stated Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig. “These results show the world how diversified and solid our economy is” he added. During the first trimester this year, Catalonia was the leading region in Continental Western Europe in terms of investment, both in total amount of investments attracted and in the amount of jobs generated. This growth is much higher than the Spanish average; foreign investment in Spain in the second trimester of 2015 was only 73% higher than that recorded during the same period last year. 

Catalan exports grew 7.4% in July and exceeded the €6,000 million barrier for the first time. The total figure was €6,086.30 million and the 4 regions in Catalonia (Barcelona, Girona, Tarragona and Lleida), all obtained positive results, according to the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness. Sales increased in the leading export sectors, which involve chemical, automotive and capital goods, with the automotive sector recording the highest increase, up 18.2% compared to last July. Since the beginning of this year, every month has recorded the best performance in export volume and if this trend keeps up, 2015 will be a  record year. In Spain as a whole, exports in July were worth 148,000 million euros, the best month ever recorded.

The Spanish Bank Association (AEB in Spanish) and the Spanish Confederation of Saving Banks (CECA in Spanish) warned about the “risks” of Catalonia’s independence. In an official announcement made this Friday, both associations assured that all banks with a presence in Catalonia “would face severe problems of judicial insecurity” in the event of a Unilateral Declaration of Independence after the 27-S elections. They outlined that “any political decision which would imply breaking the rules in force” would result in “exclusion from the EU and the Eurozone” for Catalonia. The Catalan Finance Minister, Andreu Mas-Colell, described the Spanish government as “being irresponsible” for pushing the banking sector to be against the independence of Catalonia. He regretted that such “a delicate sector” was used as an “artillery weapon”. 

The ‘Cercle d'Economia’, a Catalan economic forum open to businesspeople and academics, are in favour of a “legal and agreed” consultation if pro-independence groups have “clear” support in the 27-S elections. The forum, which is against a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (‘DUI’ in Catalan), stated that allowing the consultation is a “democratic principle” inherent in the Spanish Constitution. The Cercle d'Economia presented its views in an opinion piece which had to be redrafted since the first draft presented on Monday by the president of the organisation, Anton Costas, created differences between board members.

Catalan company Recam Làser, which specialises in laser cutting, is responsible for making the torch for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. The plant has already developed a final prototype and will start making torches this October and the 15,000 units must be delivered early next year. 800 torches will start the tour in Greece and the rest will go directly to Brazil. The torch is made out of recycled aluminium and weighs 1.5 kilos. When lit, it extends by a few centimetres and shows the colours of the flag of Brazil. Each torch will cost around 400 dollars. “This order will project us as the company which manufactured the torch in Rio 2016,” said president and founder of  Recam Làser, Pere Barrios.