Spain | The internationalization of the Spanish economy: Is it losing momentum?

Summary

The share of goods exports in Spain’s GDP has declined since the pandemic, while tourism and other exportable services have gained prominence. The challenge is to harness this potential without undermining industrial competitiveness, by anchoring it in productivity, investment, and human capital.

Key points

• Key points:
• Goods exports played a key role in the post–financial crisis recovery, increasing their share of GDP from 17.6% in 2008 to 23% in 2019; however, since 2020 their contribution has fallen to 21.5%, with growth lagging behind GDP.
• This trend reflects the normalization of domestic demand and a transition toward a more services-oriented economy, without reversing internationalization: tourism and other service exports are gaining weight and now jointly account for 34.8% of GDP.
• Exportable services—tourism, financial, digital, and professional services—offer significant room for growth, supported by digitalization, new ways of working, and lower trade barriers compared with goods.
• To sustain external competitiveness, Spain must move toward higher-quality tourism while simultaneously curbing the erosion of goods exports through productivity gains, investment, and targeted support for sectors facing structural challenges, such as the automotive industry.

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