business

In May 2014 the Catalan airfield recorded 3,397,097 passengers, a 5.5% increase on May last year. Madrid's international airport exceeded this number with a total 3,544,649 passengers, 147,562 more than its Catalan rival, with a 4.1% growth. Madrid's airport has recovered from the 10% losses registered over the last 2 years, but it grows much slower than its Catalan competitor. One of the reasons for Barcelona's growth is the notable increase of intercontinental flyers. In the first 5 months of 2014, 13,517,143 people flew from Barcelona, a 7% increase from the same period in 2013. The equivalent figure from Madrid is 15,808,392, representing a 2.8% increase. Meanwhile, the number of passengers arriving at Girona- Costa Brava Airport, continues to decline, with a fall of 20% since 2013.

Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) intends to make the terminal it runs in Barcelona's Port the most productive in the world, according to Clemence Cheng, Managing Director of HPH Europe. Cheng said that in its first two years the terminal has exceeded all expectations.  The Chinese company will therefore increase its ''commitment'' to Barcelona and will effect the second phase of investment at a cost of €150 million, in addition to the €315 million already invested two years ago. The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, participated on Friday in a ceremony to mark the kick-off of the new phase of construction and took the opportunity to claim the right of self-determination is also in order for Barcelona's Port to have maximum autonomy and not depend on decisions taken far away in Madrid.

The Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, which supports a "legal" and "informed" self-determination vote, has calculated how independence would affect business and trade exchanges between the two countries in the first 5 years and its impact on Catalonia's and Spain's GDP. Firstly, the business association estimates that with an amicable independence process, there will not be a negative impact on the trade exchange flow and therefore, without considering other elements, the GDP would not be affected by this issue. The Chamber has calculated the impact in 5 negative scenarios: from a 10% commercial boycott to a 50% one. If there was "a very intense conflict" with a 30% boycott, Catalonia's GDP would drop by a total of 3.4% over five years, while the Spanish GDP would drop by 0.8%. Catalan companies sell more to the rest of the world than to the rest of Spain.

Throughout this week the Fira de Barcelona's Montjuic exhibition venue in the Catalan capital is transformed into a business fair for start-ups and entrepreneurs. The BizBarcelona event takes place on Wednesday the 4^th and Thursday the 5^th of June and is the second edition of this innovative business fair. The event serves several purposes and contains as many as six different areas including e-commerce, the financial markets, exports, franchises, business consulting as well as cooperation and networking. The event offers various opportunities for established and future entrepreneurs. BizBarcelona is a welcome initiative. First quarter financial reports revealed a decrease in bankruptcy proceedings, and with a high unemployment rate in Catalonia and Spain it is hoped that these new companies can create jobs.

The Barcelona Metro will reach El Prat Airport by the first half of 2016, perhaps even earlier, according to forecasts announced on Wednesday by the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas. The L9 line connecting Barcelona municipality to El Prat Airport and other cities has been under construction since 2002, and was originally anticipated to open in 2008, but the financial crisis and the state of public finances have delayed its full completion. An initial stretch of the line became operational in 2009, located at the opposite end to the airport. Once fully finished, the underground line will consist of two branches spanning across the Barcelona metropolitan area, making it the longest automatic metro line in Europe. The entire project will represent a total investment of €16 billion, €3 billion of which is for the airport connection. The test phase of the airport stretch will begin this autumn and should be completed by early 2016 or earlier.

Registered unemployment in Catalonia has dropped to 592,304 people at the end of May 2014: the first time the figure has fallen below the 600,000 mark since August 2011. According to figures released by the Spanish Ministry of Employment and Social Security, between May 2013 and May 2014, registered unemployment dropped by 7.76 %, a reduction of 49,862 people. In only one month, unemployment decreased by 19,518 people from April to May, a 3.19 % drop. This has been the greatest monthly decrease recorded in May for 18 years. Furthermore, Catalonia has also experienced the greatest fall in unemployment of any Autonomous Community in Spain this last May, followed by the Region of Madrid.

On Thursday and Friday, several messages were sent from business circles and the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) aiming to negotiate a Constitutional Reform to find a better accommodation of Catalonia within Spain. However, on Friday afternoon, the Spanish Government once again closed the door to such a Constitutional Reform saying there was "no consensus". In the morning, Spain's largest business owners association stated that "laws are not immortal" and "can be changed to adapt to reality". The day before, the President of the Cercle d'Economia business lobby said he supported "a legal" consultation vote "agreed with Spain", but asked the Catalan President "to give dialogue a second chance" and reform the Constitution if necessary. On Friday, the Secretary General of the PSOE stated that such a Constitutional Reform should be negotiated among the governing People's Party (PP), the PSOE and Catalonia. However, it would not recognise Catalonia's right to self-determination. The CiU's 'number 2' replied that the Spanish Government rejects talks. 

The Catalan Parliament has finally approved the legal framework allowing the construction and the activities of the BCN World mega-resort, to be located next to PortAventura amusement park in the Costa Daurada. Now, the company Veremonte has the final green light to start construction, after it already had announced the first investors some months ago. Casino giant Melco, hotel brand Melià, US Hard Rock, Value Retail shopping malls and Investindustrial, which owns PortAventura, will participate in the $6 billion project. Furthermore, Ferrari announced it will build its first theme park in Europe there. BCN World involves 6 mega-casinos, large-size hotels, shopping malls, convention centres, theatres, golf courses, parks, a beach club, technology institutes and smart city developments.

The Catalan industrial sector received €1.365 billion of direct foreign investment in 2013, the highest amount since 2005, according to Barcelona’s Chamber of Commerce. This represents 52% of the total foreign investment in Spain’s industrial sector in 2013, while Catalonia represents around 19% of Spanish GDP. Across all sectors Catalonia received a total of €3.51 billion of foreign investment last year, 31% more than in 2012. In addition, the President of the Chamber, Miquel Valls, emphasized that foreign investment in Catalonia went mostly to the industrial sector and advanced services, while in the rest of Spain it mostly went to the recreational and real estate sectors. According to Valls, this indicates that international investors have identified Catalonia with “a new production model”, while this has not happened in the rest of Spain.

3.93 million international tourists visited Catalonia in the first quarter of 2014, which represents a 10.4% increase compared to the same period of 2013. On top of this, 2012 and 2013 were already excellent years for international tourism in Catalonia, posting significant annual increases. In the first quarter of 2014, the growing trend seems to be continuing and 10% more foreigners visiting Spain traveled to the land that has Barcelona as its capital. With 3,929,163 foreigners, Catalonia is the Autonomous Community in Spain receiving the second highest number of tourists during these three winter months, only surpassed by the Canaries, which welcomed 4,077,759 international visitors.

On Sunday 18^th of May, the Port of Barcelona will register its highest passenger record in a single day this year with 31,600 people travelling in 1 of the 7 cruise ships docked in the city's harbour. "The city of Barcelona is, economically speaking, the great beneficiary from the arrival of cruise ships" in its harbour, stated Sixte Cambra, President of the Barcelona Port Authority.  According to the organisation’s calculations, in a single day these tourists will spend €3.5 million in the city's local economy. Five of the seven cruise ships offer a turn-around service from Barcelona, which means that passengers start or end their sea journey in the Catalan capital. The two other boats are making a layover in the city.

The Spanish telecommunications multinational Telefónica will open a new call centre to take care of consumer queries in L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, a city literally attached to Barcelona's municipality. The new facilities will be operational from the 26^th of May. It will initially start with 50 workers but by November it will already employ 310 people. According to Kim Faura, Telefónica's Director for Catalonia, the company's strategy is to relocate call centres and place them near the areas where consumers live.  This new call centre will be Telefónica's fourth one in Catalonia and will focus on helping clients going through digital environments. Faura's aim is to make this centre Spain's flagship for this sort of issues.

28 employers’ associations, chambers of commerce and business organisations have signed a manifesto that explicitly backs Catalonia's right to self-determination. They presented the initiative on Thursday, in a lighthouse on the Costa Brava. The document is based on a previous agreement reached among employers and business associations just from Girona Province (north-east), but now it has been shared with organisations from throughout Catalonia. Some media, mostly edited in Madrid and abroad, are portraying the business community as against the self-determination process, but there are many employers that are backing it, even among the larger companies. A few weeks ago, the President and co-owner of the pharmaceutical Grífols – which is one of the world leaders for blood-derivate products – backed the Catalan President and his efforts to organise a self-determination vote.

In April, 12,645 jobseekers left the Catalan Public Employment Service's lists, which is the sharpest unemployment reduction for an April month since 1998. At the end of April there were 611,822 people registered as unemployed in Catalonia, a 2% drop on March figures and a 6.88% reduction compared to April 2013. This 6.88% annual drop is also the sharpest since June 2000. Furthermore, in annual terms, registered unemployment has been decreasing in Catalonia for the last 10 consecutive months, although April is traditionally a good month for employment due to the new contracts linked to Easter holidays. In the whole of Spain, registered unemployment decreased by 111,565, representing a 2.33% drop and leaving the total number of registered jobseekers at 4,684,301. In annual terms, it dropped by 6.11%, being the 7^th consecutive month with annual reductions.

Nine people were arrested on Monday in an operation run by the Guardia Civil, which is investigating an alleged misappropriation of public funds regarding work on the construction of the Madrid-Barcelona-France High-Speed Train line in the Catalan capital. The Anti-corruption Public Prosecutor’s Office suspects that €6 million could have been diverted. The Guardia Civil has searched the Madrid and Barcelona offices of Adif, the public company run by the Spanish Government which is in charge of building and maintaining train infrastructure in Spain. In addition, they have also searched the headquarters of private construction companies, such as Isolux Corsan, which has its headquarters in Barcelona. The details of the investigation are secret and cannot be disclosed yet, following a judicial order.