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Spanish economy 27th April 2026

Spain now spends more on debt interest—€40 Billion—than on unemployment or defence

In 2025, spending on public debt interest reached €40.314 billion, nearly 4% more than the previous year, which closed at €38.793 billion. According to Government forecasts, this figure will rise again in 2026, reaching a cost of €42.059 billion. This stands in contrast, for example, to spending on unemployment benefits (approximately €25 billion) or defence (estimated at around €34 billion). In 2024, the cost of borrowing had already hit a…

Spanish economy 24th April 2026

Spain only spends 45% of NextGen Funds received since 2021

According to calculations by Funcas and Analistas Financieros Internacionales (AFI), Spain has only spent €39 billion of the €71.366 billion received, representing an execution rate of barely 45% for a program that launched in 2021. Furthermore, nearly the same amount remains to be requested, as the government expects to receive up to €103 billion after waiving €60 billion in loans to which it was entitled. The entirety of the funds…

Spanish economy 23rd April 2026

Spaniards allocate 41.4% of gross salary to taxes and contributions, compared to 35.1% in OECD

In 2025, single Spanish worker without children allocated 41.4% of their gross salary to taxes and Social Security contributions. This compares to an average “tax wedge” of 35.1% across the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), according to the “Taxing Wages” report published by the advanced economies’ think tank. While the tax burden on labor costs in the OECD increased by an average of 0.15 percentage points compared to…

Spanish economy 22nd April 2026

Spanish exports fall 1.8% in first two months of year with 12% drop in those destined for U.S.

In the month of February, Spanish exports totaled €31.72 billion, a 0.8% year-on-year decrease; meanwhile, imports fell by 1.1% year-on-year. Consequently, the trade deficit was reduced, and the coverage rate between exports and imports rose to 90.6%. The 0.8% decline in sales in February compares favorably with the 3.4% drop in the Eurozone and the 2.7% decrease across the EU-27. On the import side, Spain’s 1.1% decline is also lower…

Spanish economy 21st April 2026

Number of completed homes continues to fall while prices skyrocket

The number of building completion certificates in Spain stood at 20,720 units between July and September 2025, compared to 23,186 during the same period a year earlier. This drop of over 10% is the largest ever recorded in a third quarter and the sharpest overall, trailing only the 11.4% decline in the first quarter of 2025 and the 10.9% drop in the second quarter of 2020, at the height of…

Companies, Spanish economy 20th April 2026

Repsol to claim €125 million from Iberdrola, Endesa and Naturgy over power cut that affected its five refineries in Spain

Link Securities | Repsol (REP) will claim €125 million from the electricity companies Iberdrola (IBE), Endesa (ELE) and Naturgy (NTGY) over the power cut on 28 April 2025, which affected its five refineries in Spain, as the deadline for claiming damages expires this month, according to the newspaper Expansión. This was confirmed to the newspaper by sources familiar with these legal proceedings.

Spanish economy 13th April 2026

Pedro Sánchez visits Xi Jinping once again

For the fourth time, the Spanish Prime Minister is travelling to Beijing amidst the ongoing clash with the U.S. over the war in Iran. The goal of the trip is to open the Chinese market to new sectors, attract investment to Spain, and mitigate a €40-billion trade deficit. The work agenda, which begins today and runs through Wednesday, includes meetings with the Chinese government, business leaders, and investors. “China is…

Spanish economy 8th April 2026

Income Tax Season Begins Without “Deflating” Brackets: 25% Increase Since 2018

The income tax declaration season has begun without adjusting for inflation (deflating tax brackets), which translates to paying 25% more than in 2018. Direct taxes—Personal Income Tax (IRPF) and Wealth Tax—paid by families in Spain have increased by 56.3% since 2018. This is equivalent to a 31.1% increase in real terms (after removing the effect of inflation). Consequently, each household pays €1,657 more than six years ago—a 25% increase once…

Spanish economy 6th April 2026

Employment rises, unemployment falls due to Holy Week, but 141,000 jobs lost on March 31st

Boosted by the start of Holy Week (Semana Santa), hiring grew in March compared to both February and March 2025, when the holiday period took place later in April. Consequently, unemployment fell by 22,934 people in March, a decrease of 0.94%. However, this required the signing of 1,311,000 contracts. Of these, nearly 577,000 were permanent contracts (contratos indefinidos). If they were truly permanent—and not just in name only—unemployment would be…

In Spain, Spanish economy 30th March 2026

Inflation rises to 3.3%

The National Statistics Institute (INE) reported that, according to its preliminary reading of the data, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Spain rose by 1.0% in March compared to February. The consensus among analysts expected a slightly higher rebound for this variable during the month, at 1.2%. In year-on-year terms, Spain’s CPI rebounded by 3.3% in March (up from 2.3% in February), primarily due to the rise in prices for…