This is the Spanish Government’s diagnosis, which was expressed in London by the Secretary of State for Trade, Xiana Méndez, at the presentation of the 5th Investment Barometer, which is produced annually by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in the United Kingdom.
In Méndez’s opinion, after a few months of uncertainty following the signing of the free trade agreement between the EU and the UK in 2021, Spanish companies have gained in confidence and the complications have become more technical in nature.
“One of the current difficulties is the mobility of people (...), which companies need for their investment operations,” he said.
Méndez explained that she has conveyed these concerns to the British government so that they can ease their requirements in terms of procedures and costs, although she said that the cooperation she has found with her British counterpart has been “impeccable”, which has allowed “many technical and regulatory application problems” to be solved.
The secretary of state stressed that bilateral investment between the two countries is “more than solid” and continues on a positive path: the UK is the second largest destination for Spanish investment since 2018, with almost €10 billion this year alone.
The barometer, which Méndez described as a “milestone” in relations between the two countries, shows that the cumulative level of Spanish direct investment in the UK reached a total of 73,850 million euros in 2021 - the last year with available data - an increase of 22% over the previous year.
Translated into employment generation, the study found that this amount enabled the creation of up to 128,000 new jobs in 2021, 0.4 % of the UK labour market.
Although these figures might suggest that the relationship is already “very mature” and has reached its full potential, the Spanish official highlighted the numerous opportunities that are opening up in the UK in fields such as agri-food, e-commerce, health and construction.
The British Secretary of State for Business, Kevin Hollinrake, also spoke of a “buoyant” relationship, saying that “despite the widespread repercussions of the economic and political turmoil (in the UK), ties between Spain and the UK continue to improve”.
Hollinrake echoed the words of Méndez and the Spanish ambassador in London, José Pascual Marco, in calling for “greater ambition in business mobility”, something he separated from his country’s efforts to reduce immigration, “which is a totally different matter”.
The British politician drew attention to the “incredible resilience” of businesses despite the confusion generated by Brexit and described the current moment as an “enormous opportunity” for Spanish investors, especially in the technology sector.
Another of the conclusions of the barometer is the growing confidence of Spanish companies in the United Kingdom, which leads half of them to forecast an increase in revenue, investment or employment in 2024.
Ninety-one percent of the companies that responded to the survey believe that the UK will continue to be a strategic market for them, although they warn of the risk posed by inflation, perceived as the greatest concern during 2023.
The author of the study, María Romero, who prepared the barometer for the consultancy firm Analistas Financieros Internacionales (AFI), highlighted that business optimism has grown over the five years that the report has been prepared.
Despite an adverse geopolitical context, Spanish investment has been “solid”, with a clear concentration in the services sector in particular.
Despite this, the barometer warns that the telecommunications, finance and energy sectors accounted for practically all Spanish investment in the first half of 2023.
Companies judge digitalisation and fair competition to be the most highly rated aspects of the UK market, although they put the high cost of living on the other side of the scale.
The president of the Chamber of Commerce, Eduardo Barrachina, summed up the study by stating that “the UK has consolidated its position as a key location for Spanish investment”, and pointed to closing the gap with the top destination, the United States, as the next challenge.
5 comments
To be able to write a comment, you have to be registered and logged in
When the tourists have to pay 7€ and be finger printed for the privilege of a bit of sun sand and sangria, I think they will find other places as Spain does not hold the sun's patent rights. Brexit has happened, move on, it is the past. When the money stops flowing in, that is when changes take place, more unemployed in Spain, greater tax burdens, this will concentrate the mind, Ursula is not going to "bail out" southern Europe, they will be suffocated like the Greeks.
Would that be Mary from the valleys ?
It's by no means a done deal in France. It still has to go through their equivalent of the supreme court and Macron is against it. Even if it passes through said court, it will probably be watered down considerably. The French right/far right have used this British pressure group to sock it to Macron. As for Spain, there is no need for them to change anything because they have plenty of other northern Europeans buying properties in Spain from departing Brits.
Name one benefit from Brexit? Nah thought not. Intellectually challenged people voted for it as they thought immigration from the likes of Eastern Europe was out of control. So what happened. Net immigration hit a record number, nearly a million but instead of a chunk of that being skilled Europeans, it is now lower skilled East Asians and Sub Saharan Africans. Congratulations on voting Brexit and ps Spain will never change the 90 day rule, just as France won't. You get what you voted for.
There is NO green light from France to ease the 90 day rule. The immigratiuon law, which is a convoluted mess, is already on its way to the Supreme Court, who quickly signalled that it will fall before them. Anyway, there is not more than a suggestion that the rule would "be reviewed" without any reference to EU law and internationally binding treaties. It's a nothing burger. As Spain "hinting" as it's in the headline, where is that "hint" in the following article then? NaDa. Why this one man campaign to paint the rosy image of a Brexit cake with exceptional cherries for the English? It is not fair to provoke false hopes among immigrants from the (singled out) UK. Is it in the hope to convince people they could eat their Brexit cake and have their four freedoms too? Pipedreams. Merry Christmas.