Record exports and foreign investment mitigated the contraction of the Catalan industry in 2012

Barcelona (ACN).- Catalonia’s industrial sector decreased by 1.1% in 2012 due to the economic crisis. However, exports and foreign investment mitigated the fall, according to the 2012 Annual Report on Catalonia’s Industrial Sector, presented on Thursday in Barcelona by the Catalan Government’s Deputy Minister for Business and Competitiveness, Pere Torres. Catalan companies exported products for €58.28 billion, the highest figure ever. This represented 5.7% more than in 2011 and 15.4% more than in 2008. Exports from Catalonia represented 26.2% of Spain’s total exports in 2012. Furthermore, foreign investment in industrial projects in Catalonia increased by 6.2% last year compared to 2011. Therefore, the highest volume of exports ever and an increase in foreign investment in industrial projects meant that the Catalan industrial sector decreased at a slower pace (-1.1%) than the Spanish average (-2.9%). Furthermore, Torres criticised the lack of access to bank credit, since “it is the main obstacle” to investments made by Catalan companies. In fact, industrial investment in Catalonia decreased by 2.1% in 2012. The other great obstacle slowing down the Catalan industrial sector’s growth is the poor internal demand due to the austerity measures of the public sector and the high unemployment rate.

Catalonia’s industrial GDP decreased by 1.1%, while the Spanish industrial GDP was reduced by 2.9%

The Catalan Government’s high-ranking official emphasised that “2012 was the year the Catalan industrial sector exported the most in its entire history”. This made Catalonia the highest-exporting Autonomous Community in Spain, with 26.2% of the total volume. The sectors of food and beverage, agriculture, machinery and machinery equipment and automation led the growth of Catalan sales abroad. In addition, foreign investment in industrial products increased by 6.2% in 2012, compared to the previous year, and represented €1.3 billion, half of the total foreign investment in Catalonia. These factors meant that Catalonia’s industrial GDP decreased by 1.1%, while the Spanish industrial GDP was reduced by 2.9%.

Industrial production fell by 2.7% in Catalonia in 2012, mostly led by the decrease of the extractive industries and the fabrication of non-metallic mineral products, linked to the construction sector. However, some sub-sectors registered positive data, such as food and beverages as well as electric energy and gas, the industrial production of which grew by 1.9% and 2.7% respectively. The report makes a special emphasis on the automation sector, which increased its investment by 28%. Furthermore, the main car industry in Catalonia, SEAT – which is part of the Volkswagen Group, increased its production by 6.8% in its Martorell factory (Greater Barcelona). Martorell was the only factory in Spain that produced more vehicles in 2012 than in 2011.

In addition, the report explained that industrial prices increased by 3.3% in 2012. In 2011, they had experienced the highest rate in the last few years. The main sub-sectors behind slowing down industrial prices were intermediate goods and energy, which are very much connected to global oil prices.