Catalonia grew by 2.7% last year, one tenth less than the Spanish average.

BarcelonaCatalonia's economy grew by 2.7% last year, one-tenth of a percentage point less than the Spanish average, but two-tenths of a point above the 2.5% forecast by the Catalan government last October, according to data from the Catalan Institute of Statistics (Idescat). This growth, largely driven by construction in the fourth quarter, exceeds expectations, but represents a significant slowdown compared to the 3.6% projected for 2024, a trend expected to continue in 2026 with a projected growth of 2.1%, according to the Catalan government's estimates. In any case, last year's growth remains well above the European Union (EU) average of 1.6%, and that of the main EU countries such as Germany (0.3%), France (0.9%), and Italy (0.7%), according to Eurostat data.

During the fourth quarter of last year, gross domestic product (GDP) experienced a year-on-year increase of 2.4%, two-tenths of a percentage point lower than that of the Spanish economy (2.6%), and one percentage point higher than the EU average (1.4%). In quarter-on-quarter terms, Catalan GDP growth in the fourth quarter was 0.9% compared to the previous quarter, one-tenth of a percentage point higher than that recorded by the Spanish economy (0.8%), and six-tenths of a percentage point higher than the EU growth rate (0.3%). The slowdown trend that began in the second quarter continued in the October-December period. In fact, the year-on-year increase was 3.3% in the first quarter, 2.5% in the second and third quarters, and 2.4% in the fourth. The Catalan Minister of Economy, Alícia Romero, highlights the results achieved by the Catalan economy, especially "taking into account the risks in the international context."

Upturn in all sectors

In 2025, all major sectors of the Catalan economy showed positive year-on-year growth, particularly construction and agriculture. Industrial activity grew by 1.8%, less than half the rate of the previous year. The sectors that contributed most to overall growth were pharmaceuticals, beverage manufacturing, energy supply, and motor vehicle manufacturing. Services, the largest sector, registered an increase of 3.0%, 1.1 percentage points lower than the previous year. Notable contributions from the hospitality and catering industry, the sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles, legal services, and other professional, scientific, and technical activities were particularly significant within this sector.

For its part, construction increased to 5.3%, well above the 1.7% of 2024, and agriculture also showed a favorable evolution, with an increase in its activity volume of 7.2%, compared to 4.2% in 2024. Growth, at 7%, was followed by services (2.6%) and industry (2.1%). Regarding agriculture, the increase was 6.7%.