Catalonia’s economy continued to expand in the second quarter of the year, outpacing the European average despite signs of a slowdown in Spain as a whole.
New figures from the Catalan Statistics Institute (Idescat) show that gross domestic product rose by 0.6% between April and June, four tenths higher than the previous quarter. Year-on-year growth reached 2.7%, still below the Spanish average but nearly double the 1.4% recorded in the eurozone.
The key driver has been corporate investment. Spending on equipment jumped 9.3%, while construction investment rose 3.5%. By contrast, household consumption slowed to 3.5%, public spending grew modestly at 2.2%, and exports dragged on overall growth with a negative balance of 0.5%.
Across sectors, agriculture posted the strongest growth at 4.4%, followed by services at 3.1%, construction at 2.3% and industry at 1.2%. Economists note that while consumption is cooling under the pressure of inflation and high interest rates, investment by companies is helping to sustain momentum and maintain Catalonia’s competitive edge.
The regional government has welcomed the figures, highlighting them as proof of the resilience of the Catalan economy despite global uncertainty. However, analysts warn that continued weakness in exports could weigh on future growth if international demand does not recover.
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