gdp

According to data released by the Catalan Finance Ministry, the Catalan economy has stopped the fall in GDP during the second quarter of 2013, since it remained at the same rate of the previous quarter. There has been a slow strengthening of the Catalan economy over the last few months: the fourth quarter of 2012 saw a reduction of 0.7%, the first quarter of 2013 GDP only shrunk by 0.1% and during the second quarter it remained stable at 0% growth. The improvement has been due to the industrial sector, particularly thanks to the exportation of goods which made up for the sustained falling of domestic demand. However, compared to the same figures for last year, the Catalan economy decreased by 1.3%.

Barcelona’s Chamber of Commerce has presented the results of the economic situation of Catalonia during the second quarter of the year. It is estimated that GDP rose by 0.1% on the second quarter, following 18 months of negative growth. President of the Chamber, Miquel Valls, attributes this increase to a new economic model based upon high levels of tourism and exportation, which has boosted activity in the industrial sector. Regarding outlook for the third quarter, the Chamber expects this growth to continue which will improve the business climate within Catalonia.

On Tuesday, the Catalan Government posted the so-called fiscal balances for 2010, showing the difference between the money paid by Catalans in taxes and fees to the Spanish Government and what comes back in form of funds, services and infrastructure. Using the monetary flow formula, Catalonia had a fiscal deficit of €16.54 billion, representing 8.5% of its GDP. Using the benefit formula, the fiscal deficit represents 5.8% of the Catalan GDP (€11.26 billion). The Catalan Finance Minister, Andreu Mas-Colell, stated that both formulas “are complementary” but he found the monetary flow one to be closer to the reality. The figures are similar to the results from previous years as well as to the study published in 2008 by the Spanish Finance Ministry with data from 2005. In the last 25 years, Catalonia has given away 8.1% of its GDP each year.

Catalonia’s GDP decreased by 0.3% between January and March 2013, while the Spanish economy dropped by 0.7% in the same period. The Catalan figure represents a more gentle drop compared to the last quarter of 2012, when the Catalan economy plummeted by 0.7%. However, looking at the annual figures, results from March 2013 represent a 1.9% drop compared to March 2012. Exports and tourism are the main economic engines. However, the improvement is also due to the fact that domestic consumption continued to post negative figures but they were still better than in the previous months. The data are early estimations calculated by the Catalan Statistics Institute (Ideascat) and the Catalan Economy Ministry, released on Friday.

54% of Catalonia’s external sales go to the international market while the remaining 46% go to the rest of Spain. The number of Catalan companies which sold their products outside of Spain in 2012 was 45,000 enterprises, representing a 6.3% increase in relation to the 2011 figures and 11,554 more companies than at the start of the economic crisis. The export sector represented €58.28 billion, which was 28% of Catalonia’s GDP in 2012. The figure represented a 5% increase compared to 2011 and a 15% growth on data from before the economic crisis. Sales outside the European Union increased by 16% last year, especially in Oceania (61%), Africa (24%) and Latin America (21%).

According to the Spanish Statistics Institute (INE), the Catalan GDP fell by 1% last year. However, according to the Catalan Statistics Institute (Idescat), it dropped by 1.3%. Regarding Spain’s economy, the INE declared that it fell by 1.4% while the Idescat indicates it plummeted by 1.9%. The reason for these differences is that data from both institutes are based on estimates and are still provisional. In any case, Catalonia is one of the Autonomous Communities with the mildest recession in Spain and continues to be that with the highest GDP, €198.63 billion. In addition, Catalonia is among those with the highest GDP per capita, set at €27,248 while the Spanish average was €22,772.

The Catalan Finance Minister, Andreu Mas-Colell has announced that the Catalan Government had a public debt of €50,948 million on the 31st of December, 2012. Catalonia’s debt has increased by €16 billion in only 2 years due to the financial crisis. Furthermore, in 2013, the Catalan Government will have to pay €2.2 billion in interest on the debts – equivalent to 8% of its budget and 1% of Catalonia’s annual GDP. Catalonia has been a net contributor to the European Union for decades and has been paying around 8.5% of its annual GDP – equivalent to €17 billion – every year for services and infrastructure in the rest of Spain. Despite this fact, the Catalan Government does not receive enough money from the Spanish Executive, which raises most of the taxes and distributes revenue among Autonomous Communities.

Economic recession hit Catalonia even harder in 2012 than in 2011, when it dropped by 0.7%. The contraction was especially severe in the last quarter of the year. In December, Catalonia’s GDP plummeted by 0.6% compared to 3 months previously. The fourth quarter’s poor figures made the Catalan economy contract by 1.3% over 2012. In 2011, it also decreased but at a slower pace, dropping by 0.7%. For the whole of Spain, the economy plummeted by 1.8% in 2012 and by 0.7% over the last quarter of the year, compared to the figures from September 2012. The main reason behind the last quarter’s drop is the decrease in consumption by families, compared to the purchases made in the third quarter, before the VAT increase.

The Catalan economy contracted by 0.3% between July and September, although its results improved slightly compared to the previous quarter, when it shrunk by 0.5%. The tourism sector continues to grow and internal consumption continues to drop. Compared to a year ago, by the end of September, Catalan GDP has fallen by 1.4%.

The Catalan economy remains in recession and decreased by 1.1% compared to last year. Although tourism and the foreign sectors have seen an increase, internal demand has been reduced, decreasing business in the industrial, construction and services sectors. The number of foreign tourists increased by 12.3% and tourist spending increased by 14.3%. In both cases, the percentages are much higher than the figures for Spain as a whole (2.9% and 5.6% respectively).

Catalonia’s GDP decreased by 0.1% between January and March 2012, which represents a minor drop compared to the last quarter of 2011. However, the Catalan economy has had red numbers for two consecutive quarters and technically enters a recession. The good results in the tourism and export industries improve the macroeconomic figures.

The Spanish Economy grew by 0.7% last year, however decreased by 0.3% in the last quarter, because of the “contraction in domestic demand”. The Catalan Finance Minister, Andreu Mas-Colell, said he would review the 0.8% growth prediction for 2012, since the latest data points to an economic slowdown. Besides, the Spanish Deputy Minister for the Economy, Fernando Jiménez Latorre, stated that data for the first term of 2012 “will be similar” to that of the last quarter of 2011 “or a bit worse”; if confirmed, it would mean a recession.

Catalan GDP grew by 0.7% during the second quarter of 2011 compared to the same period in 2010. However, in the first quarter it grew by 1.1%. The export sector continues being the Catalan economy’s engine, while internal demand fell. Catalan GDP grew by 0.2% from the first to the second quarter this year, the same rate than for the rest of the European Union. At the end of 2010, Catalan GDP represented 209.7 billion euros, more than Finland’s, Portugal’s or Venezuela’s.

A new study by the Catalan savings bank corrects and improves the previous economic forecast. It is now believed that in 2011, Catalonia will grow at a 1.1% annual rate, and at 1.6% in 2012. However, without the public sector budget cuts, the Catalan economy will grow at 2% this 2011. The export sector has reached historical maximums, and will lead economic growth. However, economic growth in 2011 will not be translated into an improvement in employment.

The industry sector consolidates its position as the main engine towards the recovery from the economic crisis. Despite this positive data, the 2010 GDP falls by 0.2% in comparison to 2009.