- The activity accelerates in the second quarter and accumulates a positive year thanks to private consumption and investment
- Full-time jobs grow for the first time at an annual rate from the second quarter of 2008, to 0.8%
Economic activity accelerates in the second quarter of the year and accumulates four consecutive quarters in positive. The inter-quarterly rate of GDP stands at 0.6%, two tenths more than in the first quarter, at the highest rate since the fourth quarter of 2007. In year-on-year terms, GDP increases 1.2%, seven tenths more than in the previous quarter, which consolidates the trend of progressive recovery that began last year.
By components, national demand shows a more expansive evolution in the second quarter. It contributes 1.9 percentage points to the interannual variation of GDP (0.7 points in the first), while net external demand subtracts 0.7 points from growth, half a point more than in the previous quarter (-0.2 points ).
Among the components of the national demand, highlights the higher rate of progress in spending on final consumption of households, which accelerates two tenths in inter-quarterly terms, up to 0.7%, and seven tenths in year-on-year, up to 2.4%. This last rate is the highest since the first quarter of 2008. Public Administration consumption, on the other hand, slows down more than four points to record a quarterly rate of 0.1% (4.4% the previous quarter) . Gross fixed capital formation resumes the expansive behavior initiated in the third quarter of 2013 by recording a 0.5% quarter-on-quarter rate. This recovery is explained by the rebound in investment in construction, which goes from decreasing 3.2% in the first quarter to growing 0.9% in the second, positive rate for the first time since the third quarter of 2011 (+ 0.5%) On the other hand, investment in capital goods grows for the sixth consecutive quarter, 2% quarter-on-quarter, two tenths less than in the previous quarter.
The more negative contribution of the net external demand to the annual growth of GDP is explained by a deceleration of exports more pronounced than that of imports, with rates of 1.7% and 3.9%, respectively, lower by 5.7 and 4.7 points from the previous quarter. In quarterly terms, exports grow again (1.3%) after the fall of the previous quarter (-1%), and imports accelerated six tenths, to 1.5%.
On the side of the offer and, in inter-quarterly terms, the GVA of the main branches of activity improves in the second quarter of the year, except that of the agricultural branch, which decreases 5.9%. Among the remaining ones, the greatest advance is registered in the industry, with a growth of 1.1% compared to the 0.6% fall of the previous quarter, followed by construction, with a rate of 0.9%, positive for First time since the first quarter of 2008. Finally, the services, whose VAB accelerates half a point, to 0.6%.
The annual rate of deflator of GDP is in negative territory for the second consecutive quarter, at -0.4% compared to -0.6% in the first quarter. This slight acceleration is explained both by the higher rate of progress of the deflator of private consumption, which grows 0.2%, two tenths more than in the previous quarter, as well as by the moderation in the rate of fall of the deflator of gross formation of fixed capital and exports, 0.6 and 1.6 pp, respectively, up to -1.5% and -1.2%. The import deflator, on the other hand, also decreases with less intensity, 0.5%, almost two points less than in the first quarter of the year.
The pace of creation of Full-time equivalent employment intensifies in the second quarter of 2014, half a point in quarterly terms to 0.6%, which means the net creation of 96,500 full-time equivalent jobs, the highest figure registered since the first quarter of 2008 In year-on-year terms, employment grows by 0.8%, a positive rate for the first time since the second quarter of 2008. As a result of the evolution of GDP and employment, productivity per employee slows down four tenths in the interannual rate, up to 0.4% The salary per employee goes from decreasing 0.1% in the first quarter to growing 0.3% in the second, so that unit labor costs (CLU) stabilize after the 0.9% fall in the January period -March.
The Spanish economy presents in the second quarter of 2014 a financing capacity compared to the rest of the world of 10 million euros, lower by 5,337 million euros than a year earlier. In terms of nominal GDP, it represents a financing capacity of 0% of GDP, 2 points lower than a year ago.
In short, the national accounting data for the second quarter of the year show the recovery of production and employment. On the one hand, it is found that economic activity is gaining momentum, mainly due to the growth of all components of private demand. Investment in capital goods has been growing for six quarters and construction investment increases, a situation that has not occurred since 2011. Household consumption for its part reaches an annual growth of 2.4%.
Likewise, the data for the second quarter also show the beginning of a path that generates jobs, with the creation of 96,500 full-time equivalent jobs in terms of national accounting, and begins to grow in interannual terms for the first time since 2008 .
The economic balances achieved and the competitiveness improvements achieved with the economic reforms carried out provide a solid basis to guarantee the continuity of the recovery of production and employment during the coming quarters.
