The economy grew more than expected in the first half of 2023, thanks to an improvement in household consumption and investment. Specifically, GDP increased one tenth more than estimated in both the first quarter and the second, remaining at 0.5% from April to June, and 0.6% from July to September, according to data published this tomorrow by the INE.
This review joins the one carried out by the Statistical Institute last Monday, in which when reviewing the growth in the period 2020-2022 it is confirmed that the Spanish economy recovered the pre-pandemic level in the third quarter of 2022, therefore, before what was previously foreseen.
Growth in the second quarter has been driven by national demand, which grew by 2.3%, thanks to the good evolution of household consumption and also the improvement in investment, especially in construction.
From the Ministry of Economy, they point out that "the 2023 data certify that the dynamism, solidity and resilience of the Spanish economy is maintained with growth of more than 2%, which is especially significant in a context of high international uncertainty and rise in interest rates"
The ministry also highlights that job creation is accelerating, with 576,000 more full-time jobs and growth that rose to 3% year-on-year.
With these data, the x-ray of this year's growth is presented with a trend from more to less, with a good start (0.6% and 0.5% in the first and second quarters), but with all the signs pointing to a slowdown in the second part of the year. This is what both the Bank of Spain and Airef have pointed out in recent days. However, this slowdown in growth will not prevent an increase in GDP of around 2.3% for the year as a whole, according to most forecasts, which is a much higher rate than that of the euro zone and that major European economies, such as Germany, Italy and France.
This Monday, the INE published its corrections on the growth of the last three years, with the latest data available. A common exercise, but this year has produced more notable corrections, as a result of deviations in the calculation modules due to the pandemic. It has been an upward correction of 1.3 points in the 2020-2021 period. In this way, the 2021 rate rose to 6.4% and that of 2022 to 5.8%.
