- GDP rises 1% in the second quarter, one tenth more than in the first and three times the average of the euro countries
- The contribution of national demand increases by two tenths, up to 3.3 points, and the contribution of the foreign sector improves
- The jobs to complex time rise 2.9% in the last year and accelerated nine tenths the hours worked
The Spanish economy grew 1% in the second quarter of this year compared to the first and 3.1% in the last twelve months, according to the Quarterly National Accounts published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). These are rates that recover the growth rates of 2007, that is, prior to the recession that started a year later. They also reflect that, in relation to the average for the euro area, Spain is growing at a rate that more than triples the average of the countries with which we share currency. Job creation is also accelerating, with growth of 2.9% in the last year, which means 477,400 new full-time equivalent jobs.
It is a robust and balanced growth that is the result of the correction of accumulated macroeconomic imbalances and of the reforms carried out. Both internal and external demand improve the contribution to economic growth. Consumption and investment contribute to the interannual growth of the GDP with 3.3 percentage points, two tenths more than in the first quarter, and give strength to the recovery of the Spanish economy. The foreign sector subtracted 0.2 points, two tenths less than in the first quarter, a fact that is explained by an acceleration in exports of one percentage point (up to 6%), while imports do so by 0.2 points (up to 7.2%). These data demonstrate the strong dynamism of the Spanish foreign sector and are in turn consistent with the evolution of domestic demand.
Among the components of national demand, it is worth noting the higher rate of advance in final consumption expenditure by households, which accelerated three tenths in quarter-on-quarter terms, to 1%, with year-on-year growth that remains at 3.5%. The final consumption expenditure of the Public Administrations, for its part, slowed 1.3 points, to record a quarterly rate of 0.4%.
Gross fixed capital formation is more dynamic and shows a quarterly advance of 2%, six tenths higher than in the first quarter. This improvement is explained by the acceleration of investment in capital goods and cultivated assets, whose increase reached 3.2% quarter-on-quarter, double that of the previous quarter. To this must be added the greater advancement of intellectual property products, which registered a quarter-on-quarter growth of 0.9% in the second quarter, seven tenths higher than the first quarter. On the other hand, construction investment slowed two tenths, to 1.4% quarter-on-quarter.
The lower drop in net external demand to the year-on-year growth of GDP is due to a faster acceleration of exports than that of imports, with rates of 6% and 7.2%, respectively, higher by 1 and 0.2 points to those of the previous quarter. In quarter-on-quarter terms, export growth reached 1.6%, a rate that quadrupled that of the previous quarter (0.4%) and imports accelerated almost two points, to 2.3%.
From the supply perspective, the GVA (gross value added) of the services sector accelerated two tenths in the second quarter, registering a quarter-on-quarter increase of 0.8%, and the GVA for agriculture increased its rate of growth by 2.3 points increase, up to 2.8% quarter-on-quarter. On the other hand, the VAB of the industry registered a variation of 1.4%, half a point lower than that of the previous quarter and the VAB of construction advanced 0.8%, six tenths less than in the previous quarter.
The annual rate of the GDP deflator stands in positive territory for the second consecutive quarter, at 0.6%, one tenth above that of the first quarter. This slight acceleration was mainly due to the rise in the investment deflator, whose variation rate doubled to 1.2%, and to the greater increase in the export deflator (0.9%, a rate higher by half a point a that of the first trimester). In year-on-year rates, construction completed a positive year (5.8% in the second quarter), Agriculture returned to positive rates (2.2%) and Industry (3.5%) accelerated.
Finally, employment maintains the trend of acceleration that started last year. The pace of job creation equivalent to full-time intensified in the second quarter of 2015, one tenth in quarter-on-quarter terms, to 0.9%, representing the net creation of 152,600 full-time equivalent jobs. In year-on-year terms, employment grew by 2.9%, one tenth more than from January to March, which has led to the creation of 477,400 full-time equivalent jobs. As a consequence of the evolution of GDP and employment, productivity per employed person has gone from decreasing 0.1% year-on-year in the first quarter to growing 0.2% in the second. Compensation per employee slows six tenths in the interannual rate, down to 0.2%, so that unit labor costs (CLU) fall 0.1% after increasing 0.9% in the previous quarter.
