Balearic Islands had least economic growth in 2005

Joan Collins THE Balearic Islands occupied the last position in the table of economic growth in 2005, with an increase of 2.37 percent, while Madrid headed the table with an increase of 4.11 percent. This is stated in the Regional Economic Balance report published by the Foundation of Savings Banks (FUNCAS), who measure the Gross Domestic Product, the value of products produced minus the purchase of the goods and services to make them (including taxes), by regions and at national level, where it has increased by 3.42 percent. The figures from FUNCAS show that all the autonomous regions have experienced a positive progression and that 11 of them (all except for La Rioja, the Basque region, Extremadura, Aragon, Navarra and Castilla and Leon) grew more in 2005 than they had in 2004. The study, prepared by Julio and Pablo Alcaide, shows that between Madrid and the Balearic Islands, the regions can be divided into two groups. In the first group are those whose growth is around 3.5 percent, Andalucia (3.72 percent), Cantabria (3.63), Murcia (3.56), La Rioja (3.39), Valencia region (3.37), and Catalonia (3.33). The second group consists of those with a growth of around 3 percent, Galicia (3.22 percent), Castilla La Mancha (3.16), the Basque region (3.11), the Canaries (3.09), Navarra (3.04), Extremadura (3.03), Aragon (3.0), Castilla and Leon (2.94), and Asturias (2.89). The study also has figures for the growth in different sectors and their influence in the general economic picture of each region. For example, the drop in the agricultural sector, the only one which has fallen in the whole of Spain (-0.97 percent), has especially affected regions such as Catalonia (-2.60), Andalucia (-2.20), Castilla and Leon (-1.90), Extremadura (-1.87), and Murcia (-1.65). In Andalucia the drop in agriculture had a special impact, as without taking agriculture into account the growth of this region would have been 4.27 percent. The least growth in the service sector was in the Balearics (2.50 percent as opposed to the 4.23 percent national average), while the greatest growth was seen in Madrid with 4.73 percent. The Balearics also had the least growth in the construction sector (2.30 percent), “affected by the tourist crisis”, according to the report.