The Spanish Economy

 

Many people view Spain as the weak link in Europe. However many economist have suggested that Spain could recover quicker than believed as it follows a similar economic recovery plan to that of Germany over 10 years ago. The actions of the Spanish government of fewer labour laws and cuts in public spending are aimed at a "German-style miracle"

    Times are still rough for Spaniards as the economy shrank by 0.8% in Q4 over 2012 , and unemployment at a rate of just over 26%, with the youth unemployment rate at a staggering 56%. These figures are worrying and show the bleak times that the people of Spain are experiencing.However it is argued that Spain is doing most things Germany did " but in a much shorter time span and tougher global conditions." It is unknown if this plan will succeed , and it looks unlikely that Spain is to reach Germany's status  as an economic juggernaut anytime soon. 

     Although , there is hope with recent figures highlighting progress. Spanish car industries are doing well, providing many jobs and helping tackle unemployment. Plus,the Current account is now positive meaning that Spanish exports are competitive enough to be on the rise, but a recession in much of Europe is slowing down the process. And with more austerity planned in government budgets it looks as though aggregate demand is unlikely to rise significantly anytime soon, due to stagnant rates of consumption. Thus making it unlikely that Spain will make it through their recession this year, but predictions are that 2014 -2015 will be the time where growth will start to appear in the economy.