Main Sectors of Industry

Agriculture contributes around 2.6% of the Spanish GDP and employs 4% of the workforce (World Bank, latest data available). The country is home to almost one million agricultural and livestock businesses, covering 30 million hectares of land. Spain is the world's largest producer of olive oil and the world's third-largest producer of wine. The country is also one of the largest producers of oranges and strawberries in the world. The main crops are wheat, sugar beet, barley, tomatoes, olives, citrus fruits, grapes and cork. Livestock is also important, especially for pigs and cattle (accounting for 16% and 6% of the agricultural output components, respectively - EU Commission). Data by the Agricultural ministry shows that land destined for biological cultivation accounts for 10.79% of the total arable land, with 58.485 active operators in the sector (in production or distribution). The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPA) has published the first estimate of the main economic figures for the agricultural sector. According to these data, agricultural income has reached EUR 27,861 million in 2022, which represents a decrease of 5.5% with respect to that of 2021 and an increase of 1.1% compared to its value in 2020. The ministry attributes the reduction to higher production costs due to the war in Ukraine and adverse weather conditions.

The industrial sector accounts for 20.4% of GDP and employs one-fifth of the active population. Manufacturing as a whole is the most important sector as it accounts alone for around 12% of GDP (World Bank), although factory activity in Spain shrank for six consecutive months in the second half of 2022 (data INE). The industrial sector is dominated by automotive, textiles, industrial food processing, iron and steel, naval machines, and engineering. New sectors such as outsourcing of electronic components production, information technology, and telecommunications provide high growth potential. The renewable energy sector is also growing at a fast pace. Data from INE show that Spanish industrial production increased by 2.4% in the whole of 2022.

The tertiary sector contributes 67.4% of GDP and employs 76% of the active population. The tourism sector is pivotal for the country’s economy, being Spain’s main source of income (although its contribution to GDP fell from a pre-COVID level of 12.4% in 2019 to 8% in 2021 - INE), as the country is the second-most popular tourist destination in the world. Tourism activity reached EUR 97,1 billion in 2021, as the typical branches of tourism generated 2.27 million jobs, 11.4% of total employment. The banking sector is also important and is composed of ten banking groups under the direct supervision of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (representing more than 90% of the industry) and 48 private banks, 2 saving banks and 61 cooperative banks supervised by Banco de España (European Banking Federation).

Source: World Bank - Latest available data.

Political Outline

Current Political Leaders

King: Felipe VI (since 19 June 2014), hereditary
President of the Government and Prime Minister: Pedro Sanchez (since June 2018), Spanish Labour Socialist Party

Next Election Dates

Senate: 30 November 2023
Congress of Deputies: 30 November 2023

Current Political Context

Since 2020, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of the Socialist Party (PSOE, 120 seats out of 350) has led a coalition government supported by Unidas Podemos (UP, far-left, 35 seats) and several smaller parties (including the Catalan separatist ERC).
In December 2022, the parliament approved the left-wing government's budget for 2023 which includes record levels of welfare spending. The budget also plans to invest the EU pandemic recovery funds in infrastructure and renewable energies. This was the latest budget law by the ruling coalition, as elections will take place in November 2023.

Main Political Parties

In the autonomous regions, several parties form coalition governments to garner more power. The December 2015 elections put an end to the two-party system. The main parties in the last elections held in November 2019 were:

- Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE): centre-left, a democratic socialist party and the second oldest party
- People’s Party (PP): centre-right, sometimes referred to as the 'popular party'
- Vox: right-wing, Spanish Nationalist party
- Podemos ('We can' in Spanish): left-wing anti-austerity, born in 2014 and gaining traction
- Ciudadanos (Citizens' party - C’s): centrist to centre-right, liberalism.

Other significant political forces include:

- Republican Left of Catalonia- Catalonia Yes (ERC-Catsi): centre-left, catalan independentism
- Basque Country Unite (EHB): left-wing, Basque independentism
- Canarian Coalition (CC-PNC): centre- to centre-right, Canarian nationalism.

Executive Power

The King is the Head of the State and the commander-in-chief of the army; his role is mostly ceremonial. Following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the majority of the coalition is appointed Prime Minister by the Sovereign then elected by the parliament for a 4-year tenure. The Prime Minister is the head of the government. He is also called the President of the Government. He holds executive power which includes the execution of the law and the management of the routine affairs of the country. The Council of Ministers is appointed by the king on the recommendation of the Prime minister. There is also a Council of State which enjoys the role of the supreme consulting body of the government, but its recommendations are not binding.

The President of each Autonomous Community is from the majority party of the majority coalition winning elections of the Parliaments of the Regions which take place every 4 years. The President forms a government whose «ministers» are appointed under the title «consejeros» and seconded by a cabinet and director generals, etc. who are in charge of each Department heading the sectors for which the Autonomous Community has jurisdiction in substitution of the Spanish State (single administration).

Legislative Power

The legislative power is bicameral. The Parliament, called Cortes Generales, is made up of:
- The Senate which has 265 seats. Its role is that of representing the territories (Autonomous Communities and Departments). 208 senators are elected by proportional representation for 4 years. 57 senators are elected by parliaments of the 17 autonomous communities.
- Congress of Deputies which has a minimum of 300 seats and a maximum of 400 (currently 350). The deputies are elected by universal suffrage for 4 years from departmental constituencies. There are allotted one minimum representation and the remaining is proportional to their population. To avoid splitting up which is harmful to the stability of the Chamber, the D’Hondt system is applied.
The executive wing of the government depends directly or indirectly on the parliament's support, often expressed by a vote of confidence. The legislative power belongs to the government and the two houses of parliament at the same time. The Prime Minister does not have the authority to dissolve the parliament directly, but he can recommend its dissolution to the king. The Spanish citizens enjoy considerable political rights.
The 17 Autonomous Communities also have a legislative power exercised by their unicameral Parliament within the limit of jurisdictions fixed by each of their statutes.