Outlook for the Spanish economy in the wake of the energy crisis
Fecha: noviembre 2022
Raymond Torres and María Jesús Fernández
Economic Forecasts
SEFO, Spanish and International Economic & Financial Outlook, V. 11 N.º 6 (November 2022)
The combined result of recent revisions to GDP figures reflect GDP growth of 6.7% year-on-year in the first half of 2022, up from the initially published rate of 6.3%, driven essentially by foreign demand, followed by investment, particularly in capital goods. That said, all signs point to an exacerbation of the slowdown increasingly on display in recent months, driven by the loss of household purchasing power as a result of inflation and the consequent increasing impact on household consumption. As well, the intensification of the energy crisis during the winter season could potentially lead to supply disruption, particularly in countries, such as Germany and Italy, which could lead to recession, with adverse consequences for Spanish exports. Growth this year is forecast at a solid 4.5%, up 0.3pp from our last forecast, albeit expected to be highly uneven by quarter and in terms of drivers. The economic weakness will be more tangible in 2023, when the Spanish economy is expected to grow by 0.7%, compared to our last forecast of 2% and inflation too is set to come down over the coming months, albeit remaining high. Geopolitical tensions are injecting a high degree of uncertainty into the forecast scenarios, with more downside than upside risk. Within this context, taming inflation, the economy´s ability to withstand rising interest rates and the persistence of the structural public deficit constitute the main risks for the Spanish economy.