Foreign investment in Catalonia
The foreign investment captured by the Generalitat de Catalunya has surpassed all records. Through ACCIÓ, the agency for the competitiveness of the company, an injection of 880 million euros of investment from abroad has been achieved in 2023. This figure represents an increase of 42% compared to to the previous year and is the highest recorded since 1985.
Creation of jobs and investment projects
This investment has had a significant impact on the Catalan economy. A total of 4,533 jobs have been created, 31% more than in 2022. In addition, 112 investment projects by foreign companies have materialized, 19% more than the previous year, according to the balance of Catalonia Trade & Investment, the Investment and Foreign Companies unit of ACCIÓ (https://www.softcatala.org/resum-de-textos-en-catala/).
Diversification of investment sectors and countries
Foreign investment in Catalonia has been mainly concentrated in the industrial sector, representing 67% of the total. Within this sector, investments in the areas of ICT and electronics, life sciences, automotive-mobility, video games and food stand out.
As for the investing countries, a geographical diversification has been observed. Although more than 30 different countries have been involved, the United States, France and the United Kingdom have carried out the most investment projects in Catalonia.
Impact on digital and green transformation
One of the novelties of this year has been the analysis of the impact of investment projects in digital and green transformations. 40% of the projects materialized in 2023 have had a direct link to these transformations, generating 1,900 jobs.
Future forecasts
ACCIÓ currently has a portfolio of nearly 600 ongoing investment projects. In addition, almost 50% of the companies that have invested in Catalonia in 2023 expect to do so again in the future. This demonstrates the confidence of international investors in Catalonia’s potential for growth and competitiveness (https://www.softcatala.org/resum-de-textos-en-catala/).
Investment growth in recent years
In the last five years, ACCIÓ has managed to attract a total investment of 2,955 million euros, 90% more than the previous five years. This investment has allowed the creation of nearly 20,000 jobs, 23% more than in the previous period (https://www.softcatala.org/resum-de-textos-en-catala/).