Circle of Economy: politics is glue for the hallways
The possible end of the legislature features in the conversations of businessmen at the annual meeting of the organization
BarcelonaThe Cercle d'Economia has the gift of opportunity. Its traditional annual meeting, which brings together the political and economic world for three days, usually coincides with unexpected events. In 2018, when it was still held in Sitges, under the presidency of Juan José Brugera (Colonial), the day was practically devoid of politicians due to the motion of no confidence that brought Pedro Sánchez to La Moncloa. Eight years later, in the current edition, the 41st, which began this Monday and lasts until Wednesday, under the presidency of Teresa Garcia-Milà, the one who arrived at La Moncloa then is the one who lives with his position questioned, in a pre-election atmosphere, be it via a motion of no confidence or an early call for elections. Sánchez will close the sessions on the last day and the leader of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, will precede him this Tuesday in the search to capture the interest of Catalan businesspeople.
Europe's strategic autonomy: myth or reality?,The meeting brings together a good number of business representatives, including the presidents of Banc Sabadell, Josep Oliu; Aena, Maurici Lucena; Enagás, Antoni Llardén; Repsol, Antoni Brufau; Foment, Pimec and the Chamber of Commerce, Josep Sánchez Llibre, Antoni Cañete and Josep Santacreu; the head of Veolia, Daniel Tugues, as well as the ministers of Economy, Alícia Romero; Presidency, Albert Dalmau, and Business, Miquel Sàmper.
The president of the Cercle, Teresa Garcia-Milà, who explained the main lines of the meeting, under the title Europe's Strategic Autonomy: Myth or Reality?, has valued the achievement of an agreement for the Generalitat's budgets, as well as measures such as the creation of the investment consortium. But she addressed President Illa, who wanted to convey an image of stability, and, while applauding the Catalan executive's steps, she called for a financing system for the biotechnology and life sciences ecosystem and for Catalonia not to be left out of the defense sector.
Productivity and housing
In this list of requests, it has included the defense of an economic model with greater added value, for which a leap in productivity is necessary to maintain the welfare state. And it has recovered the Circle's opinion piece defending immigration, but "ordered and aligned with the economic model we want". At the same time, it has stressed the need to increase the housing supply, rather than measures that, in the Circle's opinion, only work in the short term, such as rent control. And the last of the pending issues is that of regional financing.
The prominence of politics outside official debates has been a regular feature of the Cercle's meetings, where many businesspeople and executives take the opportunity to make contacts and deepen relationships. In addition to the 2018 event, which coincided with a vote of no confidence, after the pandemic break, Javier Faus (Meridia Capital), who was then president of the Cercle, broke with tradition and moved the meeting to Barcelona in 2021, leaving Sitges, where it had been held since 1997. Furthermore, it was achieved that Pere Aragonès, who was then president of the Generalitat, had a photo taken with King Felipe VI, after years of avoiding him since the Catalan independence process and the 2017 referendum. The 2022 edition unexpectedly featured the issue of espionage through Pegasus.
With Jaume Guardiola (formerly of Banc Sabadell) as president, the Cercle sought less political prominence, but the event was shaken on the first day when Sánchez called for general elections on July 23. Many businesspeople already saw Sánchez's cycle as over at that time. And they were wrong. In 2024, the president of the Cercle, Jaume Guardiola, warned the parties of the risk of repeated elections, which was a possibility that was looming. "It is a luxury we cannot afford," he warned.
The event took place a few days after the Catalan elections that brought the PSC to the Generalitat. And the 2025 meetings were dominated by BBVA's takeover bid for Sabadell, which collapsed nearly a year and a half later. At this meeting, Sánchez announced, to the surprise of the audience, a consultation on this operation based on criteria of "general interest." This Wednesday, attendees await his speech with curiosity.