Foreign investment in Catalonia down 56.6% in third quarter

Foreign investment in Catalonia over the third quarter of 2019 decreased 56.6% compared to the same period last year, adding up to a total of €376.1m.

According to figures announced on Friday by the Spain's ministry of industry, trade, and tourism, 2019's third quarter figures are the lowest since 2012 when in the midst of the economic crisis foreign investment was at €178.38m.

As for year-to-date figures, the decrease in foreign investment compared to the same period in 2018 has been far less drastic at 12.1%.

Foreign investment in Spain as a whole experienced a third-quarter drop of 64.3% and a year-to-date 61.4% decrease.

Catalonia ousted from Spain's top spot in GDP output

Catalonia's GDP is the second highest in Spain at €228.682bn, surpassed only by the Madrid region at €230.794bn according to figures shared on Friday by the Spanish Statistical Office. Together, both regions account for 38.2% of Spain's GDP.

The growth rate in Catalonia was 2.2%, slightly below Spain's 2.4% average.

Exports up 5.2% compared to 2018

Yet, the figures for Catalan exports were more positive, which showed a rise of 5.2% in October compared to the same month last year, amounting to over seven billion euros.

In fact, Catalonia's foreign sales accounted for 26.3% of all those from Spain as a whole, which together amounted to some 26.8 billion euros.

Girona province was the area of Catalonia that saw the biggest rise in exports, at 22%, followed by 6% in the Barcelona area, 3% in Lleida, with Tarragona falling 9%.

By sector, the largest rise in foreign sales were in food, drink, and tobacco (up 12%), and then chemicals (up 10%), with capital goods falling slightly (down 0.7%).