record

We hear from record store owners and collectors about the Catalan vinyl revival 

Phenomenon appears to be linked to climate change and the warming of traditional reproductive regions

Dramatic drop of 27 percentage points from all-time high of almost 80% in 2017 election

Night curfew will come into force on Sunday after Spanish cabinet grants emergency powers to regional governments

Coronavirus cases set highest weekly rise with still one day to go

Records and barriers (but no people) tumbled in the exceptional effort this weekend to mark International Women's Day

The 2017 edition of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) registered a record participation of 108,000 visitors from 203 countries worldwide, 7% more than last year’s edition, according to figures released this Thursday by the event organisers GSMA. Those who passed through the MWC’s main venues at L’Hospitalet Gran Via and Fira de Montjuic were mostly senior executives, including 6,100 CEOs. The economic impact in Barcelona and its metropolitan area is estimated to reach €465 million and over 13,200 temporary jobs have been created due to the MWC. 2,300 international companies, which went beyond just the mobile phone industry, including firms from the automotive, financial and health sectors, presented their novelties at the world’s most important cell-phone and internet-related exhibition. 

Catalan exports totalled €65.14 billion in 2016 and set a new record for the sixth consecutive year, according to data released by the Spanish Ministry for Economy and Competitiveness. The figure not only represents a 2% increase in comparison to last year but a higher growth than that registered in the whole of Spain (1.7%) and the Eurozone (0.17%). Thus, Catalonia continues to lead exports in the whole of Spain. This good trend is the result of “the persistent and permanent efforts of Catalan companies, which are amongst the most internationalised in our environs”, explained Catalan Secretary for Business and Competitiveness, Joan Aregio. The sectors which grew the most in 2016 in terms of exports were equipment goods (+10.4%), followed by chemical products (+1.3%). On the other hand, exports in the automotive sector fell by 0.4%.

The number of passengers whom passed through Barcelona El Prat Airport this January grew by 11.4% in comparison to the same month last year. According to the Spanish Airport Authority (AENA) 2,804,092 passengers used Barcelona El Prat Airport's facilities in the first month of 2017 and there were 20,848 operations registered. The number of flights to and from Latin America and the Caribbean grew the most, by 35.8%, followed by those to and from the Middle East (16.9%), Africa, which grew by 10.4% in comparison to January 2016, and North America (9.3%). Cargo transportation also grew in January, increasing by 11.4% in comparison to the first month of 2016 and totalled 10,330 tonnes. In terms of cargo, routes from within the Spanish state saw the biggest growth, 40.5%, while international cargo registered a 10.2% increase in comparison to January 2016.

The number of passengers whom passed through Barcelona El Prat Airport in 2016 grew by 11.2% in comparison to the previous year and set a record 44.1 million passengers. According to the Spanish Airport Authority (AENA) there were 307,864 operations registered in 2016, 6.6% more than in 2015 and both national (+11.4%) and international flights (+11.2%) grew in comparison to 2015. Cargo transportations also grew in 2016, increasing by 13.3% and totalling 135,754 tonnes. The busiest month was August, when 4.7 million passengers passed through El Prat Airport while February registered the highest growth; 2.7 million passengers used El Prat airport facilities that month, representing a 20.4% increase in comparison to the same month in 2015.

A total of 2.7 million cruise travellers will have passed through the Port of Barcelona by the end of 2016, a figure that represents an increase of about 9-10% over 2015 and marks a new record. This was announced on Monday by the president of the Port of Barcelona, ??Sixte Cambra, who explained that until now the record stood at 2.6 million cruise passengers and was achieved in 2011. It is estimated that cruises this year will generate a turnover of almost €1,000 million, while the contribution to the Catalan GDP could reach €500 million. According to Cambra, these good results are primarily due “to the boost of activity as a home port, which grew 10% compared to last year”. 

Exports from companies based in Catalonia reached €48.58 billion during the first 9 months of 2016, a 2.1% increase compared to the same period last year. According to the Spanish Ministry for Economy and Competitiveness, this figure sets a new historic high for Catalonia’s export sector, which has been growing strongly over the last few years. Moreover, in September Catalan exports were worth €5.7 billion, which is the highest figure for this month since the beginning of the historic series, in 2000. The sectors that contributed the most to the positive export figures were the chemical sector, which concentrated 60.8% of total exports, followed by equipment goods and the automotive sector. On the other hand, Catalonia’s trade deficit between January and September rose by 0.5% in comparison to the same period in 2015 and totalled €9.2 billion. 

Mireia Belmonte won the 200-metre butterfly this Wednesday and became the first Spanish woman to win an Olympic swimming gold medal. The 25-year-old, trained at Club Natació Sabadell, not only improved her result obtained four years ago in London, where she obtained the silver medal, but registered the fastest time so far this year, 2 minutes 4.85 seconds, beating Australian Maddie Groves by three hundredths of a second. World champion Natsumi Hoshi came third. Belmonte’s gold is to be added to the bronze in the women’s 400m individual medley on Saturday, which was also the first for Spain in any sport at Rio Olympics. The Catalan swimmer’s four medal career haul makes her Spain’s most successful swimmer.