Catalan economy grows 3.6% in 2024, outpacing Spain and EU

The Catalan economy grew by 3.6% in 2024, one percentage point higher than the 2.6% growth recorded in 2023.

The 2024 figure is a preliminary estimate published by the Catalan Statistics Institute (Idescat) on Friday.

According to the data, all major sectors showed positive annual growth, improving compared to the previous year, except for construction, which maintained the same growth rate as in 2023.

The growth rate of Catalonia's GDP was higher than Spain's 3.2%.

It also surpassed the European Union's estimate of 0.8%, and that of major countries such as Germany (-0.2%), France (+1.1%), and Italy (0.5%).

President's praise

Catalan President Salvador Illa praised the "good economic figures." 

"Catalan GDP grew strongly, four-tenths above Spain's economy and 2.8 points above the European Union and major economies around us, like Germany, France, and Italy," he said on Friday at an event in Vall de Boí, on the edges of the Pyrenees.

"This means that we are generating resources and prosperity," he added.

Industrial and service sectors thrive

The industrial sector stood out with growth of 4%, half a point higher than in 2023 (3.5%). The increase was mainly driven by the vehicle manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and food industries.

The service sector grew by 4.1% due to strong performances in areas such as hospitality and catering, legal activities, security services, programming, consultancy, and retail trade.

Construction grew by 1.8%, the same as the previous year. On the other hand, agriculture experienced growth of 4.1%, after two years of decline.

3.9% growth in Q4

The Catalan economy recorded a 3.9% year-on-year increase in the fourth quarter of the year, three-tenths less than the previous quarter.

All sectors saw positive growth, with services standing out, increasing by 4.6% year-on-year, although this was six-tenths lower than the 5.2% growth recorded in the third quarter, which was boosted by summer tourism.

Catalonia's GDP growth from October to December was 0.4 percentage points higher than Spain's economy (3.5%) and 2.8 percentage points above the EU’s growth (1.1%).