2Today, large cities and their metropolitan areas are driving economic growth worldwide. With the main macroeconomic indicators for Catalo- nia, Spain and Europe showing an upward trend, Barcelona wants to be- come a driver of this recovery and represent a movement towards a new economic and social model. Barcelona has unique potential and key strengths that help position the city competitively at an international level. We top the ranking of the best cities in southern Europe in terms of economic development promotion and future potential, and we are fourth amongst Europe’s most important cities behind London, Helsinki and Dublin. The main economic indicators show the city generates confidence and provides the right environment for economic activity and business. Bar- celona and its metropolitan area ended 2013 with positive indicators that confirm a certain change in trends. Tourism, industrial business activity and increases in foreign investment and exports were responsible for a part of that change. Industrial and business confidence is also rising in the Metropolitan Area. Last year in Barcelona, 7,067 new businesses were created, 5% more than the previous year. Unfortunately, this still hasn’t translated into a clear recovery in the labour market. Unemployment remains our main problem. Despite this emerging economic improvement, we continue to have more than 102,000 registered unemployed people in Barcelona. So, our first priority is to create jobs, because without economic progress there can be no so- cial progress. In addition to programmes to help get the unemployed into work and incentives for companies and organizations to create jobs, we are pro- moting a new model of economic growth based on technology, urban in- novation and advanced services in collaboration with the city’s economic and social stakeholders. We are also doing this through platforms like the Barcelona Growth Working Group (Taula Barcelona Creixement) and specific initiatives such as Barcelona Growth Center. Barcelona has a diversified economy, with highly competitive industrial sectors, services, retail and wholesale trade and commerce, tourism, new technologies and logistics. In addition, we are developing new stra- tegic industries of the future, like mobile technology, smart cities, elec- tric vehicles, green energy, biomedicine, agri-business and boating and yachting. We are consolidating our position as the Mobile World Capital, which ma- kes us a hub for digital companies. In 2014 Barcelona was chosen Euro- pean Capital of Innovation, in recognition of how we make new technolo- gies work for people. The capital of Catalonia also wants to be a model for tomorrow’s smart city. So we are building a successful urban model for the XXI century, where the functioning of the city and its services are very important. Nowadays, new technologies are already being used to improve the way the city functions in a variety of areas like security, trans- portation, cleaning, lighting, parking, the management of waste, water, social services and health care. Barcelona and its Metropolitan Area is becoming a major pole of econo- mic activity in the logistics sector, with access to markets in Southern Europe, the Mediterranean, Asia and Latin America. And, with first rate infrastructure like the Port, Airport, High Speed Train, the future Medi- terranean Corridor rail link, the Zona Franca, a free trade zone, Fira de Barcelona, the city’s trade fair, and wholesale and foodstuffs polygon Mercabarna. Barcelona is one of the main trade fair and congress cities in the world, and the third top European destination after London and Paris for cele- brating corporate events in 2014. We have the chance of promoting our city as a place of culture, knowledge, creativity, innovation and wellbeing. There is a commitment to quality education, with a network of prestigious public and private universities; we have globally recognized top-flight business schools and we have created a powerful ecosystem of collaboration between universities and companies. One of Barcelona’s assets in its quest to achieve its objectives is its extra- ordinary international projection and its powerful city brand, which is one of the results that this report highlights. We will continue to promote our- selves abroad. Our brand is associated with excellence, with doing things right, with wellbeing and quality of life. All this is the result of hard work and a spirit of cooperation and good understanding between the public and private sector, which we want to maintain. Presenting this twelfth annual report of the Barcelona Observa- tory, I would like to send my congratulations to the technical team at the Chamber of Commerce and the City Council for their work on this publi- cation, and I would also like to thank all institutions and organizations for their involvement and support. This is a good example of the sort of colla- boration that will help us to create a basis for the Barcelona of tomorrow. Xavier Trias Mayor of Barcelona 3The Barcelona Observatory is presenting a special report on the busi- ness climate in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) for the fourth year running, produced by Barcelona Chamber of Commerce’s Econo- mic and Infrastructure Studies Department. The special report shows an analysis of the results of the quarterly Sur- vey on Business Climate carried out by Barcelona Chamber of Commer- ce and the Statistics Institute of Catalonia. This survey shows Catalan business leaders’ evaluation of how well their businesses are perfor- ming, sales prices, employment and investment in 2013, and forecasts for 2014. This unique and exclusive information provides a picture of the real business situation which is especially relevant for this city, given the current economic climate. The main findings of this special report are optimistic. We know from macroeconomic data that 2013 was a year of recovery for the Europe- an Union, Spain and Catalonia. But, so too for Barcelona’s metropolitan area. The results of the Survey on Business Climate show a gradual improve- ment in business performance across the AMB after the second quar- ter, in line with a recovery in GDP in Spain and Catalonia. The hospitality and industrial sectors recorded the best business performances in the AMB -especially the first of these- thanks to strong foreign tourism and exports. Meanwhile, falls in the prices of goods, employment and investment were more moderate in 2013 compared to 2012. Industry and hospitality stood out in terms of their performance on these variables, with the in- dustrial sector recording an increase in employment in the last quarter of 2013, and the hospitality sector created jobs in the second and third quarters, which are, of course, the high seasons. Hospitality also ob- tained positive results in terms of investment in 2013. Worth noting was that the hospitality sector in the metropolitan area recorded the best results across all variables analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate in 2013, compared to the rest of Catalonia. Most significant results are in business performance and investment, and, to a lesser extent, em- ployment. Amongst the factors cited by companies in the AMB as limiting their bu- siness performance in 2013, weak demand was the most important, but to a lesser extent than the previous year due to strong external demand and a relative improvement in domestic demand. By contrast, increa- sed competition, which was the second-most mentioned factor, hardly changed, and, in the case of the hospitality sector, it was more signi- ficant in terms of limiting performance than weak demand. The third factor mentioned by companies as being a limiting factor to their bu- sinesses’ performance was finance issues, which improved slightly but remains high in terms of the historical perspective. Looking ahead to 2014, according to available data from the Survey on Business Climate at the time of preparing this report, improvements to business performance consolidated in the first quarter and this should gain momentum in the second quarter, especially in the industrial sector, hospitality and other services (not counting retail and commerce). As I noted earlier, these results, along with the compendium of indicators presented in the 2014 Barcelona Observatory, are optimistic. I want to end by thanking the technical team for their hard work and continuous impro- vements to the Barcelona Observatory project, and all those entities that have collaborated again providing information and enriching the contents of this report. Miquel Valls i Maseda President of Barcelona Chamber of Commerce 4BARCELONA CITY COUNCIL Sònia Recasens i Alsina Deputy Mayor for Economy, Business and Employment Jordi Joly i Lena General Manager of the Area of Economy, Business and Employment Àngels Santigosa i Copete Director of the Department of Studies Area of Economy, Business and Employment BARCELONA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE Miquel Valls i Maseda President Xavier Carbonell i Roura General Manager Joan Ramon Rovira i Homs Head of the Economic and Infrastructure Studies Department TECNICHAL STAFF Department of Studies, Area of Economy, Business and Employment, Barcelona City Council Teresa Udina i Abelló Economist Barcelona Chamber of Commerce’s Economic and Infrastructure Studies Department Ana Belmonte Rodriguez Economist Sandra Gutiérrez Cubero Statistics and graduate in market research Graphic design and coordination: Toni Fresno Barcelona Chamber of Commerce Design layout: DVA Associats 5Barcelona Report 2014. Summary 6 Introduction 11 Barcelona facts and figures 15 Barcelona Observatory 19 Results 20 A city for business 21 Introduction 22 Global competitiveness of cities in the world in 2013 23 European cities and regions with the best perspectives for the future 2014/2015 24 Entrepreneurial activity in countries across the world in 2013 25 Business prospects in the European Union in 2014 27 Main cities in the world receiving foreign investment projects in 2013 28 Attractiveness of European cities for international retail 2012 30 Main cities in the world hosting international meetings 2013 32 32 Knowledge society 33 Introduction 34 Population employed in technology manufacturing and services in European regions in 2012 36 Population employed in science and technology and expenditure on research and development in European regions in 2011 38 Main cities in the world for scientific production in 2013 39 Patent applications in the main regions of the OECD in 2011 42 Tourism 43 Introduction 44 Top European airports by volume of passengers in 2013 45 International tourists in the world’s main cities in 2012 46 Cruise ships at the world’s main ports in 201246 48 Sustainability and quality of life 49 Introduction 50 Smart and sustainable cities in 2013 51 Global city brands in the world in 2014 53 Quality of life and urban prosperity in 2012 54 Attractiveness of metropolitan areas for working across the world in 2014 55 Best cities in the world in terms of urban mobility in 2013 56 Prices and costs 57 Introduction 59 Cost of living in cities around the world in 2013 60 Corporation Tax and VAT in countries around the world in 2013 61 Office rental prices in European, the Middle East and African cities in 2013 62 Retail rental prices in cities around the world in 2013 64 Industrial land lease prices in European, the Middle East and African cities in 2013 65 Wage levels in cities around the world in 2012 66 Labour market and training 67 Introduction 68 Employment rate in European regions in 2013 70 Unemployment rate in European regions in 2013 71 Workers with university studies in European regions in 2013 72 Best European business schools in 2014 75 Synthesis 83 Special report 84 Business Climate in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona Situation in 2013 and prospects for 2014. Barcelona Chamber of Commerce’s Economic and Infrastructure Studies Department In tr od uc tio n 8The economy gained strength throughout 2013, and now the global eco- nomy is growing at 3%. This trend was driven primarily by improvements in the performance of advanced economies, although there are clearly diffe- rences between geographical areas. While the economies of the U.S. and Japan have maintained GDP growth at close to 2%, the euro region began its recovery at a modest pace, and the main emerging economies are se- eing more moderate growth amid increasing financial tensions. The Catalan and Spanish economies emerged from recession in 2013 and started a recovery process set against a context of improvements in do- mestic demand, the financial situation and confidence indicators. However, like the rest of southern Europe, the persistence of high levels of debt and unemployment, and an intense process of fiscal adjustment mean recovery will be a long process with a certain degree of fragility; this situation, when combined with the growing importance and dynamism of emerging coun- tries in this current phase of globalization, creates significant competitive challenges for urban areas in this geographical area. Given this context, the key to Barcelona’s competitiveness is the internati- onalization of its economy and the strength of its brand. In 2013 indicators related to foreign trade again showed improvements –a new record for in- bound tourism to the city, and in terms of foreign investment in Catalonia and exports from the Barcelona area with figures that were amongst the highest ever recorded. Barcelona has maintained a strong position inter- nationally in various areas relevant to economic and business activity. The city ranked seventh in the list of European cities with the best prospects for 2014/2015, according to fDi Magazine, part of the prestigious Financi- al Times Group. This represented a jump of fifteen positions compared to the previous year’s ranking. One synthetic indicator measuring overall city competitiveness called the Global Power City Index, created by the pres- tigious Mori Foundation, placed Barcelona 19th in the world and 10th in Europe in an overall ranking of 40 large cities in the world. Other repu- table sources include KPMG’s Global Cities Investment Monitor, which places Barcelona 10th in the list of top metropolitan cities attracting fo- reign investment projects in 2013. Meanwhile, the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) ranks Barcelona the world’s top city in terms of delegate numbers attending meetings and third in terms of number of international conferences organized between 2008 and 2012. In 2014, Barcelona gained recognition as a centre of know-how when it was awarded first prize in the European Capital of Innovation and iCapital awards for its innovative ecosystem focused on improving the quality of life of citizens. Barcelona City Council’s Strategic Framework 2012-2015 sets out a vision and objectives that are a roadmap for the city to achieve in the next four ye- ars, with two main priorities: reviving the economy and developing quality of life and wellbeing. Regarding the economy, the following objectives have been defined by the city: • Make Metropolitan Barcelona into Southern Europe’s logistics capital. • Promote emerging sectors with high added value and strengthen those economic sectors that are already consolidated to make Barcelona a benchmark in quality. • Generate the right conditions for attracting capital for investments to the city. • Strengthen the international aspect of Barcelona’s economy. • Support SMEs and the self-employed, and promote entrepreneurship. • Make Barcelona an easy place to do business (business friendly). • Make Barcelona a city of culture, knowledge, creativity and science, creating a favourable environment to attract and retain talent. It has been two years since of the launch of the so-called Barcelona Growth initiative, a strategic policy setting out the relationship between the City Council and private stakeholders based on mutual commitment and improving relations in order to produce an environment of trust and pros- perity for private and business activities. The majority of the measures set out in this 30 point policy have already been set in place and now the city wants to prioritize those actions that can make Barcelona an ideal envi- ronment at the world level for economic and business development. These measures are being developed from the so-called Barcelona Growth Center, located in the unique Media-TIC building in the 22@Barcelona in- novation district. The aim is to bring together and align a set of resources and activities aimed at supporting local and international companies. Bar- celona Growth Center will host activities that can help position Barcelona as the best environment for economic growth, amongst which we find the following: • Business Support Office, whose mission is to be a specific contact point for all business activity in the city in order to create a favourable environ- ment for the setting up and the development of companies. The idea is to make Barcelona an easy place to do business (business friendly). The Of- fice will provide a wide range of regulatory compliance services, becoming a single contact point for information and for preparing and processing documents to comply with those City Council procedures and certificates required for a company to trade, and also offering business support and advice on creating, consolidating and growing businesses. • Data Resource Center (DRC) and Showroom, this is a space for showca- sing the economic potential of Barcelona, a place where local businesses can present themselves to potential investors, customers and suppliers, and also for foreign companies that want to know the potential of the city’s 9economy and /or for those thinking of setting up business here. The centre will offer a wide range of resources and information about the local eco- nomy for businesses and new projects. It will also be an innovative show- case for networking and holding meetings for local, nation and internati- onal business. • The headquarters of the Mobile World Capital Foundation (FMWC) and other key stakeholders related to the mobility sector. The Foundation aims to leverage Barcelona’s position as mobile capital to drive different sec- tors of the economy, extending new mobile technologies throughout the region’s business activities. It also wants to ensure that Barcelona is able to consolidate its industrial legacy after 2018, when the city’s tenure as capital of mobile technologies ends. To do this the Foundation has set up five programmes: Europe, Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Transforma- tion of the local ecosystem, Business Competence Centres and Barcelona Mobile Forum. • m-startup-barcelona, a support and growth programme specifically to develop companies involved in mobile technology. With support from the Mobile World Capital Foundation, the programme offers companies the opportunity to use Barcelona Growth Center, get expert advice, get access to large companies, and also to find highly-qualified talent from universi- ties. Also, the city is actively promoting public-private collaboration to develop business sectors considered strategic for Barcelona’s economy. These in- clude areas like ICTs, logistics and foodstuffs, powerful sectors like retail and commerce and tourism, and new high-tech sectors like biomedicine and electric vehicles in the field of transport and sustainable energy. With the Barcelona Growth project, the city wants to create an environ- ment of business confidence that fosters economic growth, business creation and employment, which will be the best guarantees for the ap- plication of quality social policies. To do this Barcelona is leveraging its strong municipal financial position, which is the result of the Council’s rigorous financial and budgetary management. This means the Council can guarantee liquidity and budgetary stability objectives, like the payment of suppliers within 30 days. All this has brought the city recognition from the main international credit ratings like Fitch and Standard & Poor’s, who have maintained the city’s positive ratings and highlighted the Council’s efficient debt management and its positive indicators. With the economy moving towards recovery, Barcelona continues to face important competitive challenges due to factors related to the fragility of the current situation and the impact of global trends on urban areas in southern Europe. Barcelona has a number of competitive strengths like its diversified economy, a dynamic export base, its strong tourism magnetism, municipal financial solvency and strong brand positioning as a benchmark for quality. The city is planning its future with a renewed strategic road- map and new forms of public-private collaboration to position Barcelona as an international reference for economic growth and business, and also to move its economy towards one based on know-how, creativity, innovati- on and sustainability. Barcelona Report 2014. Introduction 10 11 Fa ct s an d fig ur es 12 BARCELONA FACTS AND FIGURES 2013 F Rabat Dublin Paris London Oslo Stockholm Berlin Prague Warsaw Athens Bilbao Brussels Amsterdam Frankfurt Rome Algiers Tunis MadridLisbon Palma Lyon Geneve Milan Seville Zaragoza Zurich Munich 1000 Km1800 Km 1h40min.2h 30min Copenhaguen Barcelona Report 2014. Barcelona Facts and figures 13 Surface area (km2) Population Foreign population (% of total) Density (habitants/ km2) Climate (Can Bruixa Observatory) 2012 Average monthly temperature Yearly rainfall (mm) Hours of sun MACRO ECONOMIC DATA GDP (var/yr %) - Catalonia Social Security membership Unemployment rate 16-64 years old (%) Employment rate 16-64 years old (%) Activity rate 16-64 years old (%) CPI (average var. %)- Barcelona Prov. Exports (million €)- Barcelona Prov. Imports (million €)- Barcelona Prov. Outbound foreign investment (million €) -Catalonia Inbound foreign investment (million €) -Catalonia Companies - Barcelona Prov. Foreign companies in Catalonia** RETAIL AND TOURISM Retail premises -Barcelona Prov. Major open air shopping areas Municipal markets (number and surface area (m2)) Hotels Number Beds Tourists INFRAESTRUCTURE Airport Runways - Number and length (m) Passengers International passengers (%) Port Land surface area (ha)* Docks and moorings (km)* Total transit (thousands of tonnes) Trade fair and congress activity Trade fairs Visits to Fira de Barcelona Hall surface area taken up by fairs (m2) International meetings Universities in Catalonia University students in Catalonia (course 2011/2012)* Foreign schools (Barcelona Prov.) Innovative companies in Catalonia* Beaches (number and metres) Bike lanes (km and bicing members)* Public libraries (number and users) Museums, collections and exhibition spaces (number and users) Public sports facilities (number and users) Theatre, concert and cinema spectators 101.4 1,611,822 17.4 15,904 18.0ºC 480 2,915.4 -0.5 970,825 17.2 65.4 79.0 0.3 45,280.2 52,408.6 1,845.3 3,944.3 438,385 5,602 69,173 22 43;209,500 365 67,567 7,571,767 3/3,352;2,660;2,528 35,210,735 71.1 1,081.0 22.0 41,391.2 57 1,490,061 421,976 2,039 12 241,835 36 4,159 9;4,873 186.7;113,787 39.6;343,803 57;25,317,392 1,833;171,111 9,388,059 GEOGRAPHICAL ENVIRONMENT ECONOMIC ENVIRONMENT TRAINING AND CITY OF KNOWLEDGE QUALITY OF LIFE Note: Data from 2013, except *2012 Source: AENA, Barcelona City Council, Barcelona Trade Fair, Autonomous Regional Government of Catalonia, Idescat, INE, National Institute of Meteorology, Spanish Ports Authority, Secretary of State for Trade, Barcelona Tourism Board, Barcelona Institute of Culture, Spain’s Ministry of Education. 14 15 Th e O bs er va to ry 16 17 We hereby present the Barcelona Observatory 2014 Report, which is an initiative promoted by Barcelona City Council and Barcelona Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with many organizations in the city that year after year work with these two organizations, providing information and making key contributions on their sectors. This twelfth edition of the annual Barcelona Observatory report continues to provide information that can be used for decision making by business stakeholders interested in doing business or setting up their business in Barcelona, for attracting talent to the city or for supporting their presenta- tions and candidatures for events or opening up office headquarters in this city. As such, every year the report presents Barcelona’s position compared to other major cities in the world according to a set of economic and social benchmark indicators. The 2014 Report presents the following characteristics in a clear and direct way, as summarized below: • A selection of significant indicators that offer the reader an efficient synthesis of those issues most relevant to understand Barcelona’s positioning, its characteristics and the challenges it faces. Specifically, the current report presents 29 indicators, of which four are new: firstly, European cities and regions with the best prospects for the future, which forms part of the chapter called City for business, secondly, world city brands, thirdly, attractive metropolitan areas in the world for working, finally, best cities in the world in terms of urban mobility and sustainability, part of the chapter on Quality of Life. • The inclusion of visuals for each indicator, with graphs or maps, helps to understand the results and analysis of trends. • A summary table bringing together indicators to see Barcelona’s position. • Inclusion of a special report carried out by Barcelona Chamber of Commerce with analysis of the business climate in the Area Metropolitan in 2013 and prospects for 2014, including specific analysis of the main economic sectors. Based on the opinions of business people, readers get to understand Barcelona and Catalonia’s current situation and possible furure scenarios. The publication includes the following sections: • A general introduction on the city’s current situation and priority economic policy measures. • A section with the results featuring 29 indicators presented in six separate areas: business, knowledge economy, tourism, sustainability and quality of life, prices and costs, and labour market and training/education. • A special article prepared by Barcelona Chamber of Commerce which analyzes the business climate in 2013 and the economic outlook for the metropolitan area of Barcelona in 2014. • A summary section where you can see Barcelona’s position with respect to the main benchmark cities in a visual and summarised way. Barcelona Observatory is characterized by the following features: • It is built around a set of indicators defined mainly at the city level, but which can be extended to other territorial boundaries. • The data is obtained from a sample that in some cases is as big as sixty cities worldwide. It should be noted that for seven of the indicators the sample was chosen because it reflected the main urban areas. • Where possible indicators include a graph to show trends so that progress can be assessed in each specific area. • Information sources are reputable and recognized international organi- zations and institutions. • Data and information has been updated to the extent to which it was available. _ _R es ul ts C ity fo r bu si ne ss to the prestigious Mori Global Power City Index, and it was also in the top 10 European cities with most international retail in 2012, according to an index compiled by Jones Lang LaSalle. It was also the top city in the world in number of delegates and the third in terms of number of inter- national conferences organized in the period 2008-2012, according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). Regarding entrepreneurship, in 2013 the rate of entrepreneurial activity (TEA) in the province of Barcelona stood at 6.7%, above Germany (5%), France (4.6%) and Finland (5.3%), having experienced a slight increase on the previous year. Both the Chamber of Commerce and the City Co- uncil are working on this aspect to promote entrepreneurship and help create business in the city. Two years after launching the so-called Barcelona Growth Working Group, a space for debate, building relations and mutual commitment between Barcelona City Council and private stakeholders to produce an environment of confidence that fosters the prosperity of personal and bu- siness activities, many of the 30 policy measures agreed are already well underway. The idea is to prioritize those measures that promote Barcelo- na worldwide to make it an ideal environment for economic and business development. These measures are being given a boost by the Barcelona Growth Center, located in the city’s unique Media-TIC building in the 22@ Barcelona innovation district. The objective is to bring resources and po- licies together and align them to help local and international companies. Barcelona Growth Center will host activities that can help position Bar- celona as the best place for economic growth. Amongst these we find the so-called Business Support Office, the Data Resource Center and the so-called Showroom (DRC & Showroom) and stakeholders linked to the Mobile World Capital, the so-called mstartup-barcelona and the Barce- lona Innovation Gateway, as well as organizations and institutions linked to the knowledge economy and innovation, like BDigital, Cibernàrium CTecno, UOC; and facilities for companies such as the so-called Auditori empresarial, and related business institutions like the 22@Network. Introduction 2013 marked the beginning of an economic recovery in Catalonia, Spain and the whole of the European Union, ending a second economic reces- sion that had begun in 2012. Specifically, Catalonia’s inter-quarterly GDP growth recovered after the second quarter and picked up momentum as the year progressed, reaching a higher recovery rate than the rest of Spain. Meanwhile, data from the labour market also showed improve- ments, particularly in terms of employment in Catalonia, which recove- red its inter-annual growth rate in the fourth quarter of 2013. This has continued through to the beginning of 2014, according to data from LFS (Labour Force Survey). Employment stabilized in Barcelona at the end of the year, after five years of job losses, and a more moderate labour mar- ket adjustment compared to its surrounding area. Although the new economic environment reflects an improvement in domestic demand, indicators linked to wider trade links abroad are still performing particularly favourably. Worth highlighting was the dynamic nature of foreign direct investment in Catalonia in 2013, which reached the second highest amount in recorded history to stand at over 3,500 mi- llion euros, representing inter-annual growth of 31.5%. Also, Barcelona and its hinterland’s export stability were noteworthy, after achieving re- cord levels in 2012. Results of a survey on business prospects for 2014 by Eurochambres again show improvements to business activity trends in Catalonia, and the importance of exports. Catalan business executives forecast that the fall in turnover will come to a halt after the drops seen in 2013. Moreover, export prospects are clearly positive and, once again, Catalonia is placed in the upper part of the European ranking, above the average for the EU and countries like Belgium or Germany. Given this backdrop of general improvement, Barcelona occupies seventh place in the ranking of European cities with the best future prospects for 2014/2015, according to the magazine fDi Magazine, part of the prestigi- ous Financial Times Group. This ranking shows Barcelona jumping fifte- en places in this category compared to the previous year. In terms of its position amongst cities in the south of Europe, Barcelona came first in the fDi overall ranking and top in terms of its promotion to attract foreign investment, both recognized with awards by the magazine. Other indicators in this report confirm the attractiveness of doing busi- ness in Barcelona. Firstly, in 2013 the Catalan metropolis ranked in the top 10 of the world’s major cities in terms of the amount of foreign in- vestment projects received, after having maintained this position during the last five years (2009-2013). Also, Barcelona was among the top 20 cities in the world in terms of global competitiveness in 2013, according 22 Global competitiveness of cities in the world in 2013 Barcelona, among top 20 cities for overall global competitiveness The 2013 Mori Global Power City Index report, which compares 40 cities across the world, places Barcelona 19th and 10th in the world and Europe, respectively, in terms of global competitiveness. In a ranking led by large metropolises London, New York, Paris and Tokyo, Barcelona had an overall score similar to those of Madrid, Toronto and Copenhagen, and higher than those of Brussels, Osaka, and Vancouver. Since 2008, Japanese Mori Memorial Foundation, working hand-in-hand with renowned universities and think-tanks, has produced a synthetic index called the Global Power City Index based on 70 indicators grouped into six categories, according to areas of urban competitiveness. In 2013´s edition Barcelona was among the top ten cities in the world in the ‘liveability’ cate- gory and twelfth in the category called ‘cultural interaction’, and it reached mid-range positions in the category ‘accessibility’ (15th) and in the category named ‘environment’ (19th), but got less favourable results in the category ‘R&D’ (32nd) and ‘economy’ (34th). 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 City Position Global competitiveness of cities in 2013 Source: Mori Global Power City Index. Institute for Urban Strategies. The Mori Memorial Foundation. Source: Mori Global Power City Index. Institute of Urban Strategies. The Mori Memorial Foundation. Barcelona’s 2012 position Barcelona’s 2013 position 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 Categories of urban competitiveness (positioning of Barcelona) Environment AccessibilityLiveabilityCultural interaction R+DEconomyGlobal 13 34 8 11 6 24 36 4 19 15 12 32 London New York Paris Tokyo Singapore Seoul Amsterdam Berlin Vienna Frankfurt Hong Kong Shanghai Sydney Beijing Zurich Stockholm Madrid Toronto Barcelona Copenhagen Brussels Los Angeles Osaka Vancouver Geneva 19 Barcelona Report 2014. City for business 23 European cities and regions of the future 2014/2015 Barcelona 7th top European city with the best prospects for the future The Financial Times Group´s fDi Magazine Cities and Regions of the Future 2014/2015 report ranked Barcelona seventh-best city in Europe in terms of its future prospects. The city jumped fifteen positions on the previous ye- ar’s ranking and is ahead of Berlin, Amsterdam, Edinburgh and Paris. And for the first time Barcelona features in the TOP 10 Major European Cities- Overall category, only behind London, Helsinki and Dublin. Its strong position in this ranking is backed up by its overall top position and its top spot in terms of foreign investment promotion by cities in Sout- hern Europe, recognized with an award by fDi Magazine. In addition, the ranking of cities by category saw Barcelona in 4th place in terms of foreign investment promotion and 5th place for infrastructure, 5 positions up on the 2012/2013 ranking, and it’s now ahead of Brussels, Madrid and Vienna. Moreover, according to the report, Catalonia is the third most attractive re- gion in southern Europe, behind Lombardy and Tuscany, and it is the ninth best region in terms of business friendliness in the overall ranking of regi- ons. City 2014/20152012/2013 Global Ranking* 2014/2015 Sc or e f or la rg e Pr om oti on fo re ign Hu ma n R es ou rce s Pr om oti on fo re ign Inf ra str uc tur e: Eu ro pe an ar ea s an d l ife sty le: la rg e inv es tm en t Inv es tm en t lar ge Eu ro pe an ci tie s So uth er n E ur op e So uth er n E ur op e Eu ro pe an ci tie s 1 1 5 4 London Helsinki Eindhoven Cambridge Dublin Munich Barcelona Berlin Amsterdam Reading Edinburgh Vienna Glasgow Rotterdam Lyon Paris Grenoble Utrecht Birmingham Ghent Liverpool Lisbon Derby Cork Galway 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 1 7 8 6 22 9 15 5 11 3 14 2 24 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 Barcelona’s position 9 *To create this ranking fDi collects data from 468 cities and regions in five categories: economic potential, human capital and lifestyle, cost efficiency, infrastructure and business friendliness. Source: fDi Magazine. European Cities and Regions of the Future 2014/2015 Source: fDI Magazine. fDi Magazine. European Cities and Regions of the future 2014/2015 24 Entrepreneurial activity in countries across the world in 2013 Barcelona’s rate improves more than the main European players According to data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), in 2013 the rate of entrepreneurial activity (TEA) of the resident population in the province of Barcelona stood at 6.7%, an increase of 0.2% on the previous year, which is the second time the rate on this indicator has increased since 2007. Though this is a moderate change, this TEA performance compares favourably with that of the main countries in Western Europe. In general, (with the exception of the Nordic countries) there have been decreases in the rate of entrepreneurial activity, in some cases significant variations like in the UK (-2.1%), the Netherlands (-1.5%) and France (-0.6%). However, Barcelona’s TEA remains below the average of the European Union, where the rate of entrepreneurial activity has increased almost 0.4% to stand at 8%, thanks in large part to countries in Eastern Europe. In 2013 Barcelona and Catalonia’s TEA remained above countries like Fin- land (5.3%), Germany (5.0%), Belgium (4.9%), France (4.6%) and Italy (3.4%). Catalonia has the third highest rate of entrepreneurial activity (6.6%) of all Spain’s Autonomous Regions, and it is well above the Spanish average (5.2%). The main reason for becoming an entrepreneur in the Barcelona area is to take advantage of a business opportunity, although the percentage doing so out of necessity (30.2%) is higher than the European average. Regarding other indicators on entrepreneurship, the rate of established entrepreneurs stands at 8.9%, and the rate of new entrepreneurs remains at 2.2% and the rate of emerging entrepreneurs is 4.5%, while the rate of business wind-ups is 1. 7%. Entrepreneurship Activity 2013 (% of population 18-64 years old)Year 2012 Entrepreneurship Activity in Europe (% of population 18-64 years old) 5.2 7.1 6.7 6.6 4.6 9.3 8.3 5.3 13.3 9.3 9.5 9.7 SPN CH BCN CAT FRA GER NEDUK BÉL FIN SW HON LET POL ESL So ur ce : G lo ba l E nt re pr en eu rs hi p M on ito r (G EM ), 20 13 G lo ba l R ep or t a nd C at al on ia E xe cu tiv e R ep or t 2 01 3 5,0 5.5 GRE 1.3. Correcte Brasil Argentina China Latvia United States Hungary Slovakia Poland Netherlands Sweden Switzerland EU average UK Barcelona Catalonia Russia Greece Finland Spain Germany Belgium France Japan 17,1 18,9 12,8 14,3 12,9 9,2 10,3 9,5 10,8 6,4 5,9 7,6 9,2 6,5 7,9 4,3 6,5 6,0 5,7 5,3 5,2 5,2 4,0 17.3 15.9 14.0 13.3 12.7 9.7 9.5 9.3 9.3 8.2 8.2 8.0 7.1 6.7 6.6 5.8 5.5 5.3 5.2 5.0 4.9 4.6 3.7 Note: Entrepreneurial activity includes new companies (less than 3 months of activity) and start-ups (3 to 42 months of activity). The data base comes from 63 countries, although the table shows a selection of a sample for benchmark countries. Source: Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), 2013 Global Report and Catalonia Executive Report 2013 Barcelona Report 2014. City for business 25 Business prospects for the European Union in 2013 Business turnover forecasts for 2014 improve Forecasts for business turnover in Catalonia for 2014 have improved com- pared to the previous year, according to a survey by Eurochambres. Spe- cifically, the percentage of employers predicting an increase in turnover is almost equal to those forecasting a fall, with 22% and 23%, respective- ly. This suggests that the fall in turnover is coming to a halt, which would therefore confirm a recovery phase for the Catalan economy. Despite this improvement, however, Catalonia continues to be in the lower half of the European ranking, just ahead of Italy and Cyprus. In parallel, investment prospects in Catalonia are not favourable: 29% of business executives say they expect this indicator to fall compared to 11% who expect increases. In contrast, export prospects for Catalonia are clearly positive: 45% of Ca- talan business people expect this to increase, a much higher percentage than the 11% who believe exports will fall in 2014. As such, Catalonia is again positioned in the top part of the European ranking, above the EU average and countries like Belgium and Germany. (p) FUNCAS forecasts (May 2014) Source: Chamber of Commerce from Eurochambres, IDESCAT and FUNCAS panel forecasts 80 60 40 20 0 -20 -40 12 9 6 3 0 -3 -6 Business prospects in Catalonia Tu rn ov er (B al an ce in % ) R ea l G D P (v ar . y ea r, in % ) 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 (p) Turnover Real GDP 2.7 55 57 3 -0.2 10 -4.2 0.3 0.5 23 8 -1.3 1.2 -1 -4 -0.6 1.4. Correcte 26 Country Country Exports (Balance in %) Investments (Balance in %)Country Note: The amounts are calculated as the difference between the percentage of answers indicating ‘increase’ and percentage indicating ‘decrease’. This year there is no regional level information because regional participation has been very heterogeneous at the country level. *Sample average Source: Eurochambres, The Business Climate in Europe’s Regions in 2014 72 67 64 55 53 48 48 40 39 37 35 32 32 28 20 19 18 16 15 13 10 8 5 -1 -13 -43 90 72 63 62 60 44 44 44 40 39 38 37 34 32 31 31 30 30 25 24 23 22 17 9 3 1 -9 50 43 42 32 31 31 27 27 23 20 17 16 16 9 9 8 7 4 1 0 -1 -2 -2 -3 -14 -14 -18 -33 Portugal Finland Serbia Lithuania Latvia Estonia Spain Turkey Bulgaria Poland Malta Greece Catalonia (BARCELONA) Italy EU* Slovenia Belgium Romania Slovakia Luxembourg Germany Austria Netherlands Croatia Czech Republic Cyprus Hungary Lithuania Finland Serbia Portugal Estonia Poland Turkey Belgium Bulgaria Romania Slovakia Croatia Malta Latvia Spain Luxembourg Netherlands EU * Slovenia Hungary Greece Czech Republic Austria Catalonia (BARCELONA) Italy Cyprus Lithuania Latvia Portugal Turkey Finland Serbia Poland Malta Romania Slovakia Bulgaria Belgium Estonia Croatia Hungary Germany EU * Italy Luxembourg Greece Spain Hungary Czech Republic Netherlands Austria Slovenia Catalonia (BARCELONA) Cyprus Turnover (Balance in %) Barcelona Report 2014. City for business 27 Main cities in the world receiving foreign investment projects in 2013 1 3 2 5 4 8 10 7 6 12 9 13 15 - - London Shanghai Hong Kong New York Sao Paulo Sydney Paris Moscow Beijing Barcelona San Francisco Düsseldorf Dublin Tokyo Amsterdam 305 215 189 162 151 124 119 116 115 106 93 87 82 79 70 2012 Projects 2013City Source: Global Cities Investment Monitor 2014, KPMG Source: Global Cities Investment Monitor 2014, KPMG. Number of foreign investment projects 2009-2013 São Paulo MoscowHong Kong Shanghai London Barcelona jumped two spots to 10th position in the world ranking According to KPMG’s Global Cities Investment Monitor 2013, Barcelona stands 10th in the ranking of the main urban areas in the world receiving most greenfield FDI projects, meaning those not using local partners or those in new locations, and as such the city jumps two positions in the ranking compared to 2012, and now stands ahead of San Francisco and Mumbai. According to KPMG, between 2012 and 2013 the number of in- ternational greenfield investment projects in Barcelona grew for the third consecutive year (3.9%), reaching a total of 106. Likewise, in the 2009-2013 period, the Catalan capital was placed in tenth position in the ranking of global cities with a total of 518 projects, a ranking led by London, Shang- hai and Hong Kong. Worth noting was that Barcelona had 30% of all foreign investment pro- jects in Spain in 2013, followed by Madrid (with 18%). This percentage is lower than that of London in the UK (38%), but it is well above Frankfurt, Warsaw and Düsseldorf (with 10%, 14% and 16%, respectively). Moreover, the European Attractiveness Survey 2013 by Ernst & Young shows Catalonia is in third place among European regions with most foreign in- vestment projects, behind London and the Ile de France and ahead of Ma- drid, Düsseldorf, Stuttgart and Dublin. Catalonia was in the same position in 2011 and it has held lofty positions in the rankings since 2005. 2013 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Paris Beijing New York Sydney Barcelona 1,705 1,340 1,142 823 753 721 647 602 550 518 28 Attractiveness of European cities for international retail in 2012 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 14 16 16 18 19 19 19 22 23 23 25 26 26 28 29 30 31 32 32 235 217 196 174 168 151 146 142 140 138 Ranking 2012 City Global Index Barcelona, among the top 10 most attractive European cities for international retail Barcelona was 10th in the ranking of European cities with most international retail in 2012, according to an index compiled by Jones Lang LaSalle from an analysis of 250 leading world retailers’ activities in Europe. London is the city with most international retail, followed by Paris, Moscow, Milan and Madrid, while Barcelona is located above Istanbul, Berlin, Hamburg, Vienna and Amsterdam. In 2011 Barcelona was also placed among the top ten most attractive cities for international retail in the same ranking. Spanish retailer Zara is located in all the cities included in the study, while Mango is in third place, along with The Body Shop and Benetton. In terms of luxury retail, Barcelona jumped a position to stand in 9th place in Eu- rope in 2012, above cities like St. Petersburg, Kiev, Hamburg and Prague, in a ranking led by London, Paris and Moscow. London Paris Moscow Milan Madrid Rome Munich St. Petersburg Prague Barcelona Istanbul Berlin Hamburg Vienna Amsterdam Frankfurt Athens Antwerp Warsaw Lisbon Düsseldorf Brussels Zurich Kiev Stockholm Dublin Cologne Valencia Budapest Bucharest Zagreb Lyon Copenhagen *No data exists for countries below 10th position. Source: Jones Lang LaSalle, Cross Border Retailer Index, Destination Europe 2013. Barcelona Report 2014. City for business 29 UK 3rd Retailer Ranking The Body Shop 3rd = Lush 6th Burberry 31th = Karen Millen 37th = Marks & Spencer 64th = Italy 1st Retailer Ranking Benetton 3rd = Diesel 11th = Max Mara 13th = Geox 16th = Emporio Armani 37th = France 5th Retailer Ranking Louis Vuitton 19th = Petit Bateau 37th = Escada 37th = Cartier 47th = Hermès 53th = Spain 6th Retailer Ranking Zara 1st Mango 3rd = Massimo Dutti 11th = Bershka 31th = Desigual 31th = Germany 4th Retailer Ranking Adidas 16th = Hugo Boss 19th = New Yorker 24th = Deichmann 27th = Puma 27th = Most important retail companies by country of origin Note: The position of the company is based on its presence in cities analysed in the report Source: Jones Lang LaSalle, Cross Border Retailer Index, Destination Europe 2013 30 Main cities in the world hosting international meetings in 2013 So ur ce : I nt er na tio na l C on gr es s an d C on ve nt io n As so ci at io n (IC C A) Barcelona’s Position 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 2 2 2 22 8 5 3 Paris Madrid Vienna Barcelona Berlin Singapore London Istanbul Lisbon Seoul Prague Amsterdam Dublin Buenos Aires Brussels Copenhagen Budapest Beijing Rome Bangkok Stockholm Sydney, NSW Hong Kong Helsinki Munich Rio de Janeiro Tokyo Taipei Shanghai Montreal, QC Sao Paulo Toronto, ON Kuala Lumpur Warsaw Oslo Panama City Santiago de Chile Vancouver, BC Boston, MA Bali Edinburgh Lima Washington, DC Belgrade Melbourne, VIC Oporto Athens Montevideo Vilnius Bogota Florence Cape Town Jeju Zurich Kyoto Milan 181 164 195 154 172 150 150 128 106 100 112 122 97 99 107 137 98 109 98 105 110 86 96 100 78 83 69 80 64 67 77 60 69 46 74 36 61 49 46 47 67 43 48 38 54 42 52 43 36 50 20 38 33 70 61 39 12.7 13.4 -6.7 16.2 3.5 16.7 10.7 14.1 17.9 25.0 8.0 -1.6 17.5 14.1 3.7 -20.4 8.2 -3.7 1.0 -11.4 -15.5 8.1 -7.3 -15.0 5.1 -4.8 14.5 -2.5 12.5 6.0 -9.1 15.0 -1.4 41.3 -16.2 66.7 -4.9 16.3 21.7 17.0 -17.9 25.6 10.4 36.8 -3.7 21.4 -5.8 14.0 33.3 -6.0 130.0 18.4 36.4 -37.1 -29.5 10.3 204 186 182 179 178 175 166 146 125 125 121 120 114 113 111 109 106 105 99 93 93 93 89 85 82 79 79 78 72 71 70 69 68 65 62 60 58 57 56 55 55 54 53 52 52 51 49 49 48 47 46 45 45 44 43 43 International Meetings 2012 Variation 2013/2012 (%) International Meetings 2013Cities Source: ICCA 2013 (May 2014) Barcelona climbs one spot to stand fourth in the world In 2013, Barcelona hosted 179 international conferences, which pushed the city up one place in the ranking of cities hosting most international events to stand at fourth in the world, behind Paris, Madrid and Vienna, but ahead of Berlin, Singapore, London and Istanbul, according to the annual report of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA). The number of international conferences held in Barcelona grew 16.2%, which follows on from an upward trend that started a few year ago (in 2012 – 154 meetings; 2011 – 150; 2010 – 148; in 2009 - 144). This means Barcelona has been in the top five for seven consecutive years. Moreover, according to a report called A Modern History of International As- sociation Meetings 1963-2013 by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), Barcelona is the world’s top city in terms of number of international delegates and third top in terms of international conferences organized in the period 2008-2012, with a total of 519,159 delegates and 822 conferences. In 2014 and 2015 Barcelona is hosting a new benchmark conference, the European Supply Chain & Logistics Summit (SCL), organized by the Anglo- Canadian World Trade Group (WTG), which was held in Berlin last year. The Catalan capital won the bid to host this event beating cities like London, Rome and Rotterdam. 5 4 Barcelona Report 2014. City for business 31 K no w le dg e so ci et y 33 Introduction Barcelona City Council’s Strategic Framework 2012-2015 sets out the ob- jective of making Barcelona a city of culture, knowledge, creativity and sci- ence by creating the right sort of environment to attract and retain talent. As such it represents a commitment to transform the city’s business mo- del. It has been able to generate sufficient critical mass in terms of human resources and attain a remarkable level in terms of international research which, given the current economic climate, is essential for bringing about a recovery in business activity. Importantly, the city has made a commitment to creating a highly innova- tive ecosystem by leveraging three major projects that will bring together stakeholders and allow citizens to make the most of technology services: Smart Cities, Mobility and O-Government. This integrated approach to serving the public has helped Barcelona to win first prize in the European Capital of Innovation and Capital awards. The city occupies fourth position in Europe’s Smart City ranking for 2013, according to magazine Co.Exist. In terms of the knowledge economy, Catalonia has managed to attain a critical mass in its labour markets in sectors with high added value: Cata- lonia is the eighth European region with the largest number of employe- es in knowledge-intensive high-technology sectors, fifth in terms of em- ployees in science and technology, and eleventh in terms of employment in high and medium-high intensity manufacturing technology in 2012. In the same year, over half of all its employees (53%) in Barcelona worked in knowledge-intensive activities, while creative industries accounted for more than 100,000 jobs and these activities have managed to perform bet- ter than other sectors. By following a strategy of promoting research, Barcelona has managed to make progress in this area and in 2013 it was fifth and eleventh in Europe and the world, respectively, for scientific output, the latter being one po- sition higher in the global ranking than the previous year, according to an annual report issued by University Polytechnic of Catalonia (UPC). Of the 300 Advanced Grants awarded by the European Research Council in 2013 to researchers, six of these groups work in Catalonia, representing 46% of all the grants awarded in Spain. In addition, three public universities in and around Barcelona also stand out for their research: Pompeu Fabra University is rated number 164, the Autonomous University of Barcelona and the University of Barcelona are both among the top 250 universities in the world, according to The Times Higher Education Ranking 2013 - 2014. In terms of innovation results, 2011 saw a significant increase in technology patents (+35.8%) and a slight stabilization in the number of total PCT patent (-0.8%) applications in the Barcelona area. However, with regard to business innovation in 2012, Catalonia was the Autonomous Community that had most companies with innovative activities in Spain, with 4,159 firms, representing over a fifth (23%) of the total, and generating expenditure on business inno- vation of 3,312 € million, representing 24.7% of all spending in Spain, which happens to be the highest contribution in the last seven years. By contrast, spending on R&D relative to GDP in Catalonia, which had shown a clear up- ward trend in the period 2001-2009, started falling from 2010 to reach 1.51% in 2012, a higher ratio than the average value for Spain (1.30%), but lower than the EU average (2.1%). Regarding technology entrepreneurship, Barcelona forms part of a group of 10 European cities that stand out because of their number of start-ups, according to the magazine Wired, along with London, Moscow, Berlin and Stockholm in the top spots in the classification. Currently, Barcelona is trying to use its position as world mobile capital to encourage all the city’s firms to incorporate this technology throughout their businesses. It has developed a special programme called m-startup-barcelona to support new business creation and business growth in companies related to mobile technologies via the Mobile World Capital Foundation. According to a comparative analysis on innovation regions in Europe carri- ed out by Eurostat, called Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2013, Catalonia ranks among what is called ‘innovation moderator’ regions. According to this report, Catalonia’s results were above the European average on the indica- tor ‘population with tertiary education’, and slightly higher in ‘employment in technology manufacturing and services’, ‘public sector spending on R&D’ and ‘sales of new products for the mass market or businesses’. For the period 2014-2020, the European Commission requires member sta- tes and regions to develop strategies for research and innovation (RIS3) to foster economic and knowledge specialization that fit the innovation poten- tial of regional assets and capabilities, criteria that guide the allocation of community funds. The Autonomous Regional Government of Catalonia has defined a frame from which different R&D+I actions and programmes will be developed and how it will support the creation and development of in- novative projects in a document called Research and innovation strategy for Catalonia’s smart specialization (RIS3CAT). Barcelona has aligned its strategy via RIS3BCN, which defines the city’s leading sectors and emerging clusters, technology services and innovation systems, as well as policy and other wor- king group areas in each of the clusters. 34 Catalonia, eighth and eleventh European region with most workers in technology services and technology manufacturing According to Eurostat, in 2012 Catalonia was the eighth top European region with most employment in knowledge-intensive high-technology services, a position that was one place higher than the previous year. With a total of 100,000 workers in these activities it had fewer workers in this sector than the regions of Ile de France, Lombardy, and Upper Ba- varia, but more than Rhône-Alps, Darmstadt and Stuttgart. Employment in technology services in Catalonia rose by 13.6% compared to 2011, which was the second highest increase of all the top 12 regions, and, as well, it also improved in terms of its weight compared with the total population employed, standing at 3.5%, beating 2008’s result on this in- dicator by 1.3%. It’s worth noting that employees in Barcelona who work in knowledge-intensive high-technology services represented 5.2% of the total in 2013, after having experienced an annual growth of 1.8%. Likewise, Catalonia is the eleventh top European region in terms of ha- ving most people employed in high and medium-high technology manu- facturing with a total of 175,000 workers in these sectors. In a year in which this employment area grew in the main benchmark regions, Ca- talonia dropped six positions with a fall of two percent on this indicator, and it was overtaken by the regions of Darmstadt, Düsseldorf, Piedmont, Karlsruhe and Emilia Romagna compared to the previous year, a cate- gory headed by Stuttgart, Lombardy and Upper Bavaria. Moreover, Ca- talonia’s employment weighting in high and medium-high technology manufacturing reached 6.1%, which places it in the upper-mid range of a group of 285 European regions, Population employed in technology manufacturing and services in European regions in 2012 Population employed in knowledge-intensive high-technology services and employees in high and medium-high technology manufacturing, 2012 Source: Eurostat Île de France (Paris) Outer London (London) Catalonia (Barcelona) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Darmstadt (Frankfurt) 334 133 100 72 69 198 41 175 192 200 Employees in high and medium-high intensity technology manufacturing (in thousands) Employees in knowledge-intensive high-technology services (in thousands) Barcelona Report 2014. Knowledge society 35 Ile de France (Paris) Madrid (Madrid) Lombardy (Milan) Outer London (London) Upper Bavaria (Munich) Lazio (Rome) Mazowsze (Warsaw) Catalonia (BARCELONA) Istanbul (Istanbul) Inner London (London) Berkshire County Buckingham County of Oxford (OXFORD) Stockholm (Stockholm) Berlin (Berlin) Surrey, East Sussex and West Sussex (BRIGHTON) Rhône-Alps (LYON) Karlsruhe (KARLSRUHE) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Cologne (Koln) Darmstadt (Frankfurt am Main) South and East (Dublin) Midi-Pyrénées (Toulouse) Central Hungary (BUDAPEST) Bucharest - Ilfov (Bucharest) Helsinki - Uusimaa (Helsinki) North Holland (Amsterdam) Southern Netherlands (The Hague) Capital Region (Copenhagen) Provence-Alps-Côte d’Azur (Marseille) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) Hamburg (Hamburg) Piedmont (Turin) Attica (Athens) Lisbon (Lisbon) East Anglia (East Anglia) Bedford County and Hertford County (LUTON) County of Gloucester, Wiltshire and North Somerset Southwest (BG) (SOFIA) Emilia Romagna (Bologna) Prague (Praga) Oslo og Akershus (OSLO) Schleswig-Holstein (KIEL) Loire (NANTES) Employees in high and mid-to-high intensive technology manufacturing (as a percentage of the total population) Employees in high and mid-to-high intensive technology manufacturing (in thousands) Region (CITY) Source: Eurostat 6.40 7.00 3.10 5.8 5.80 4.90 4.40 3.50 2.10 5.70 7.50 7.60 5.00 5.70 2.80 5.50 2.90 3.70 3.50 5.00 5.40 5.10 6.20 7.70 4.30 3.20 6.50 2.60 2.20 5.30 2.60 3.30 4.10 4.10 5.30 4.00 4.60 2.30 6.80 6.80 3.20 2.90 3.80 3.30 9.30 1.8 11.50 2.50 3.20 6.10 4.50 1.00 4.00 2.40 4.70 3.20 5.80 14.20 7.70 8.60 10.10 4.80 5.20 5.30 2.40 4.40 1.40 2.20 4.80 3.60 20.10 6.90 10.40 2.10 2.90 3.80 4.60 4.40 2.50 9.40 3.10 0.90 5.60 5.30 Employees in knowledge-intensive high-technology services (as a percentage of the total population) 198 91 398 41 256 56 79 175 200 16 47 26 77 43 157 187 192 165 200 66 64 67 26 36 20 38 42 69 442 63 192 29 34 44 39 50 24 184 20 6 75 79 334 191 133 133 129 111 107 100 96 89 88 84 83 76 75 72 72 70 69 69 66 66 65 62 60 57 56 51 49 48 48 47 47 47 46 46 45 45 44 44 43 43 Employees in knowledge-intensive high-technology services (in thousands) 36 Catalonia, fifth top European region in terms of employment in science and technology Catalonia, with 640,000 graduates working in science and technology in 2012, stands in fifth position in the ranking of European regions in this ca- tegory, one position up on the previous year, having overtaken the region of Lyon, but behind Île de France, London, the Community of Madrid and War- saw. It is, however, ahead of regions like Lombardy, Upper Bavaria, Berlin or Amsterdam. After a rapid expansion of these activities during the period 1998 -2008 and a fall between 2009-2011, employment in the area of science and technolo- gy in Catalonia increased strongly by 8.1% in 2012, meaning that the overall cumulative drop since 2008 has been far less pronounced (-1.8%). Thus, Ca- talonia is still one of the European regions with most critical mass in this area and a relative weighting of workers engaged in science and technology in relation to total employment that stands at around 12%, up by 3% on 2000. In 2011 research and development (R&D) activities accounted for 1.6% of GDP in Catalonia, a value higher than regions like London or Lombardy, but still far off leading regions like Copenhagen, Stuttgart and Stockholm. This indicator showed a clear upward trend in the period 2001-2009 in Catalonia, but thereafter it decreased slightly and reached 1.51% of GDP in 2012, a hig- her value than the Spanish average (1.3%), but lower than in the EU (2.1%), and the strategy target for 2020 (3%). That same year Catalonia generated about a quarter of Spain’s domestic expenditure of firms’ R&D (23.6%) and accounts for 23% of all innovative companies in Spain. People employed in science and technology (2012), and spending on research and development in European regions in 2011 *Population between 15 and 74 years Source: Eurostat People employed in science and technology (as a percentage of the total population*) 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Catalonia (Barcelona) North Holland (Amsterdam) Lombardy (Milan) 4.7 5.1 5.6 5.6 6.5 6.5 6.7 7.1 7.6 7.6 7.88.8 9.5 9.2 9.1 11.1 11.4 11.8 11.8 10.8 11.7 11.3 10.9 13.4 14.0 14.2 16.2 18.7 17.5 18.2 18.9 19.8 19.3 19.1 25 20 15 10 5 0 18.6 10.8 7.7 8.1 Barcelona Report 2014. Knowledge society 37 Ile de France (Paris) Madrid (Madrid) Inner London (London) Mazowsze (Warsaw) Catalonia (BARCELONA) Rhône-Alpes (LYON) Lombardy (Milan) Upper Bavaria (Munich) Berlin (Berlin) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Andalusia (Seville) Darmstadt (Frankfurt) Cologne (Koln) Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (Marseille) South Holland (Rotterdam) Attica (Athens) North Holland (Amsterdam) Silesia (KATTOWICE) South-East Ireland (Dublin) Midi-Pyrénées (Toulouse) Lazio (Rome) Nord - Pas de Calais (Lille) Stockholm (Stockholm) Central Hungary (BUDAPEST) Surrey, East Sussex and West Sussex (BRIGHTON) Lithuania (VILNIUS) Valencia (VALENCIA) Berkshire County Buckingham County of Oxford (OXFORD) Arnsberg (Arnsberg) Loire (NANTES) Capital Region (Copenhagen) Brittany (Rennes) County of Gloucester, Wiltshire and North Somerset Bucharest - Ilfov (Bucharest) Karlsruhe (KARLSRUHE) North Brabant (Hertogenbosch) Thuringia (Erfurt) Malopolska (Krakow) Emilia-Romagna (Bologna) Greater Manchester Aquitaine (Bordeaux) Lisbon (Lisbon) Basque Country (Bilbao) West Sweden Schleswig-Holstein (KIEL) Freiburg (Freiburg) Hamburg (Hamburg) Veneto (Venice) Southern Finland (Helsinki) 2.02 0.33 1.10 0.35 0.89 1.92 0.91 3.43 1.38 6.06 1.43 0.42 2.79 1,41 1.10 1.01 0.36 1.11 0.20 1.11 3.41 0.52 0.42 2.72 1.08 1.42 0.24 0.42 2.05 0.89 0.79 3.58 1.25 1.86 0.35 2.67 1.58 1.02 0.27 0.94 0.41 0.97 1.08 1.64 3.05 0.69 1.81 1.26 0.69 2.01 3.02 1.00 2.00 1.37 1.60 2.87 1.32 4.50 3.53 6.55 1.84 1.16 3.46 3.12 2.03 2.12 0.77 2.09 0.52 1.64 5.05 1.67 0.84 3.77 1.62 1.85 0.91 1.05 3.57 1.48 1.17 5.08 1.96 2.81 1.08 4.36 2.01 2.20 1.06 1.44 0.96 1.53 2.09 2.15 4.02 1.42 2.78 2.22 1.03 2.84 Employees in science and technology (*% Population) 2012 Total domestic expenditure on R&D (% GDP) in 2011 Region (CITY) 1.458 1.346 686 680 640 620 612 609 572 559 519 514 491 461 441 424 398 389 386 380 379 374 364 358 356 350 344 342 323 317 317 314 309 304 302 301 296 289 281 281 274 261 260 248 247 240 238 231 229 132 16.8 22.6 18.3 16.8 11.8 13.8 8.1 18.6 20.5 16.9 12.5 8,2 16.1 14.5 12.2 16.1 13.0 19.1 10.5 15.4 18.3 8.6 12.7 22.6 15.4 17.6 15.0 8.9 19.4 11.0 12.5 24.0 13.5 17.5 16.8 15.2 15.8 17.2 11.7 8.4 13.8 11.2 12.1 15.4 17.4 11.4 15.1 16.1 6.1 15.2 *Population aged 15 to 74 years Note: Employees who have graduate-level scientific training and are employed as professionals or technicians Domestic expenditure includes capital, current and labour expenditure -both researchers and administrative staff-related research activities in proportion of GDP. Source: Eurostat Domestic expenditure on business R&D (% GDP) in 2011 Employees in science and technology (in thousands) 2012 38 Top cities in the world for scientific production in 2013 Barcelona is eleventh among world’s top cities With 14,249 scientific publications and papers, Barcelona is the fifth top city in Europe and eleventh in the world in this category, according to the Knowledge Cities Ranking 2013 issued by the UPC’s Centre of Land Policy and Evaluations. Barcelona improved its position in the world ranking, whilst remaining stable in the European ranking for the third consecutive year, despite recording a reduction in the number of publications compared to 2012. Thanks to this result, Barcelona overtakes Los Angeles and Bal- timore compared to 2012, and in terms of scientific publications it stands clearly above Berlin, Munich, Milan or San Francisco. According to the Network of Science and Technology Parks of Catalonia -in agreement with the Web of Science Core Collection source-, the main science and technology areas publishing most international publications and papers in the Barcelona area are clinical medicine, biological sciences, chemistry, basic medicine and physics. Meanwhile, of 300 Advanced Grants awarded by the European Research Council in 2013, 6 research groups work in Cata- lonia, representing 46% of all grants awarded in Spain, a figure which shows once again the quality of the research done in Catalonia. At the European level, Catalonia is in the 12th position in terms of scholarships, behind Italy. Positioning of Barcelona in world and European rankings 1 5 9 13 17 21 25 29 20062005 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 11 7 7 67 6 5 5 5 27 21 21 20 15 17 13 12 World ranking European ranking Source: The elaboration of CPVS from UPC data from SCI (Science Citation Index) 38 39 42 41 40 45 43 44 47 48 46 52 49 51 50 54 53 58 55 59 57 56 60 City European ranking 2013 World ranking 2013 World ranking 2012 11 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 1 2 3 4 8 5 7 6 9 13 12 17 16 11 15 10 18 14 20 19 21 24 23 22 28 26 25 27 29 32 30 34 31 33 35 36 37 38 39 42 41 40 45 43 44 47 48 46 52 49 51 50 54 53 58 55 59 57 56 60 53,717 33,233 27,936 26,806 26,732 25,406 25,264 25,155 16,087 14,452 14,249 13,972 13,971 13,837 13,721 13,668 13,372 13,318 13,082 12,956 12,048 11,789 11,679 11,397 11,368 10,845 10,613 10,610 10,359 10,138 10,062 9,597 9,231 9,110 9,072 8,827 8,377 6,678 6,645 6,425 6,386 5,991 5,722 5,716 5,679 5,609 5,588 5,571 5,473 5,471 5,377 5,361 5,338 5,291 4,881 4,864 4,805 4,786 4,765 4,581 Beijing London Tokyo Seoul Shanghai Boston Paris New York Madrid Moscow Barcelona Toronto Cambridge, Ma Baltimore Sao Paulo Los Angeles Chicago Philadelphia Rome Houston Berlin Melbourne Singapore Milan Kowloon Montreal Munich Cambridge Amsterdam Oxford Osaka Zurich San Francisco Pittsburgh Stockholm Stanford Copenhagen Lyon Prague Manchester Warsaw Athens Dublin Edinburgh Hamburg Buenos Aires Mexico City Brussels Naples New Delhi Geneva Rio de Janeiro Valencia Toulouse Montpellier Marseille Lisbon Turin Glasgow Yokohama 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 *Provisional data Source: Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC) Centre of Land Policy and Valuations Publications 2013* F Barcelona Report 2014. Knowledge society 39 Barcelona recorded a significant increase in technology patents Barcelona and its hinterland registered a total of 432 international appli- cations for PCT patents in 2011, according to the residence of its inven- tor. This figure is slightly down on 2010 (436), in a context marked by a widespread fall in the number of patent applications. However, Barcelo- na continues to be ahead of Lyon, Madrid, Milan, Amsterdam, Montreal, Toronto and Copenhagen, and if we consider the number of PCT patents per million inhabitants in its urban area, the indicator shows an increase from 77 in 2010 to 80.4 in 2011. Barcelona recorded a significant increase in the number of applications for technology patents, which stood at 111 in 2011, which was 29 more than in 2010 (+35.8%), and as such above other benchmark regions like Düsseldorf and Marseille compared to 2010, and still ahead of Milan, Lyon and Copenhagen. Data from the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office (OEPM) for 2013 show a general downward trend: the number of national patent applica- tions in Catalonia declined to 556 (-4.6%), a milder decrease than those seen in the Barcelona provincial area (which achieved a total of 454 pa- tents) and the whole of Spain, both down around -7%. Patent applications in the main regions in the OECD in 2011 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 *Cooperation Treaty on Patents Source: OECD PCT patents* (number of applications) 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 Barcelona Milan Amsterdam Dublin 187 212 238 272 378 377 414 403 419418 436 432 40 2 Province (City) PCT technology patent applications 10,431 5,550 3,237 3,159 2,985 1,714 2,188 1,783 1,688 1.429 1,425 1,230 982 716 629 610 554 548 432 405 393 373 343 286 253 192 180 178 178 173 130 129 115 111 110 107 92 65 49 46 38 37 37 36 Total PCT patent applications 366.2 347.9 174.7 50.3 123.5 98.0 37.1 55.5 45.5 199.3 128.4 187.7 209.5 196.4 30.0 21.8 55.9 79.2 20.7 31.0 25.3 20.5 29.3 59.5 50.0 11.9 37.8 32.5 42.4 1.1 53.0 16.8 17.7 65.1 9.2 22.2 27.5 73.6 3.6 7.9 6.8 5.7 4.2 7.6 790.5 559.5 322.9 135.4 357.6 306.3 109.1 253.1 161.6 297.9 531.9 458.0 478.1 467.4 79.8 207.4 160.2 242.8 80.4 232.9 61.6 118.2 127.6 145.0 92.0 45.8 91.1 103.8 256.5 13.0 102.8 48.8 66.4 186.0 43.7 94.5 87.6 132.2 11.9 22.3 22.4 32.6 29.8 34.1 4,832 3,451 1,751 1,174 1,031 868 744 391 475 956 344 504 430 301 237 64 194 179 111 54 161 65 79 117 138 50 75 56 29 15 67 44 31 39 23 25 29 36 15 16 12 7 5 8 Tokyo (Tokyo) Silicon Valley (San Jose) Seoul (Seoul) New York (New York) Boston (Boston) Osaka (OSAKA) Los Angeles (Los Angeles) Houston (HOUSTON) Chicago (CHICAGO) Seattle (SEATTLE) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) Munich (Munich) Stockholm (Stockholm) Uusimaa (Helsinki) London (London) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Berlin (Berlin) Paris (PARIS) Barcelona (Barcelona) Rhône (LYON) Madrid (Madrid) Milan (Milan) Amsterdam (Amsterdam) Montreal (Montreal) Toronto (TORONTO) Rome (Roma) Bouches du Rhône (Marseille) Vienna (Vienna) Copenhagen (Copenhagen) Istanbul (Istanbul) Dublin (Dublin) Manchester (Manchester) Budapest (BUDAPEST) Oslo (OSLO) Valencia (Valencia) Brussels (Brussels) Hérault (Montpellier) Edinburgh (EDINBURGH) Attica (Athens) Lisbon (Lisbon) Warsaw (Warsaw) Vizcaya (Bilbao) Prague (Prague) Birmingham (Birmingham) Note: Geographic criterion in terms of patent location is taken as the residence of the inventor. The database contains 1,742 individual provinces, but the table shows only a selected sample of benchmark provinces. Source: OECD PCT technology patent applications per million inhabitants Total PCT patent applications per million inhabitants Barcelona Report 2014. Knowledge society 41 42 To ur is m 43 Introduction In 2013 tourism continued to drive activity in Barcelona, as has happened since 2009, and was one of the key sectors for Barcelona’s economic re- covery, with new records set in key indicators. According to Turisme de Barcelona, the city received more than 7.5 million tourists at its hotels in 2013, 1.8% more than in 2012, and it has also broken the record for over- night stays which now approaches 16.5 million billed nights, representing an annual increase of 3.5%. It’s worth noting that the increase in tourist numbers mostly came from international tourism, which accounts for about 80% of all visitors and which displays a wide range of nationali- ties. This fact favours future growth: firstly, mature markets continue to grow like the French or British markets; secondly, expanding markets like Russia, China and Nordic countries continue to grow. Barcelona does have a strong position in the world’s tourism market: in 2012 it ranked 23rd most favourite international tourism destination from 100 cities and 6th most preferred in Europe, according to a report titled Top Cities Destination Ranking 2012 by Euromonitor International, above cities like Moscow, Beijing, Los Angeles, Budapest and Vienna. Meanwhi- le, according to European Cities Marketing Benchmarking Report 2013, Barcelona was the fifth-top European city in terms of international tou- rist overnight stays in 2012. Other relevant rankings like the MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities 2013 ranks Barcelona tenth-top city in the world and third in Europe, behind only London and Paris, in terms of nights spent and spending by international tourists; Trip Advisor ranks the city fifteenth in terms of its tourism appeal in 2014. Both the Port of Barcelona and the Airport are an important gateway for city tourism: the number of cruise passengers was 2.41 million in 2012, a figure that kept the port at the head of Europe’s listing for the 12th consecutive year and positioned it fourth-top port in the world. Results for 2013 with 2.6 million passengers and an annual growth rate close to 8% showed the situation is still improving. As well, passenger traffic at Barcelona Airport grew to reach a new record of 35.2 million travellers in 2013, according to the ACI Airport Traffic Report, which means the Airport remains in Europe’s top ten in terms of passenger traffic. Institutions and business organizations (Barcelona City Council, the Go- vernment of Catalonia, Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Aena Ae- ropuertos) are promoting and developing international connections from Barcelona-El Prat Airport through the so-called Barcelona Air Route De- velopment Committee (CDRA). This good work earned CDRA the GEBTA 2013 Initiative Award, a prize given by Spain’s GEBTA business travel agency group for the last twenty years, to recognize the work and careers of personalities and institutions involved in this sector. Importantly, ACI named Barcelona Airport best airport in Europe in 2014 in the category of large airports with over 25 million passengers. The International Catalonian Tourism Show (SITC), the largest general public travel show in Spain held last April 2013 in Barcelona, showcased specialized services offered by domestic and international destinations. At the same time, professionals and experts in tourism promotion and energy, transport and engineering companies came together to exchan- ge experiences about how to promote sustainable destinations in a new edition of Smart Destinations Forum. Importantly, Barcelona became the first-ever certified Biosphere Class Destination. Finally, in order to meet the 2012-2015 Strategic Framework objectives of promoting new tourism attractions across all the city’s districts to distribute tourism throughout the city, Barcelona City Council approved the so-called 10 District Tou- rism Plans last December 2013. By promoting each district’s tourism of- fer the city can improve individual neighbourhood positioning and enrich the city’s overall tourism. 44 Barcelona stays in the top 10 major airports ranking in Europe In 2013 Barcelona Airport reached a new record in passenger traffic, rising to 35.2 million, an increase of 0.2% on the previous year, according to data from ACI Europe’s Airport Traffic Report. This increase, however, was the lowest in the last four years, meaning the airport lost a position in favour of London- Gatwick This meant Barcelona came 10th in the European ranking, above air- ports like Domodedovo (Moscow), Orly (Paris) or Zurich. Airport passenger traffic trends were varied across Europe, with Barcelo- na Airport achieving a positive performance despite falls recorded at other airports like Madrid (-12.1%), Athens (-3.2%), Milan-Malpensa (-3.1 %) and Rome-Fiumicino (-2.2%). 2013 was marked by strong growth in international traffic, particularly from the Middle East (+34.4% on last year), thanks to new air routes to Qatar and the UAE, and also due to passenger growth from Afri- ca (up +25.4% due to an increment in flight frequencies and the number of destinations) and finally due to passengers from outside the European Union (+12.9%). Main European airports in terms of passenger numbers in 2013 City (Airport) *In 2010 Barcelona Airport dropped one position due to the entry of Istanbul in the ICA Statistics. If it had not been for that, it would have remained ninth. Source: Airport Council International, ACI Europe Airport Traffic Reports Passengers (millions) Barcelona’s position in the ranking 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010* 2011 2012 2013 Barcelona (BCN) Munich (MUC) Amsterdam (AMS) Milan (MXP) 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 9 10 99 9 9 9 Variation 2013/2012 (%) Passengers 2013 109 9 3.3% 0.7% 0.9% 3.0% 14.1% -12.1% 0.8% -2.2% 3.6% 0.2% 9.2% 11.7% 3.8% 8.0% 0.3% 3.1% 4.0% 0.4% -0.7% 1.9% 5.1% 5.1% 5.6% 7.9% 0.9% 28.7% -3.1% 2.2% 4.6% 2.8% 3.9% -1.4% 2.7% 15.2% -3.2% 3.3% 15.2% 1.5% 18.3% 11.2% 9.1% 6.3% -1.2% 0.8% 8.8% -1.5% 2.2% -2.2% -2.1% 0.8% 2.0% 1.3% 0.2% 72,334,583 62,052,917 58,036,948 52,569,250 51,320,875 39,729,027 38,672,644 36,166,345 35,462,233 35,210,735 30,765,078 29,256,226 28,274,154 27,003,712 24,865,138 24,067,030 22,956,544 22,768,082 21,999,926 21,228,226 20,687,423 20,673,810 20,166,783 19,591,838 19,133,222 18,641,842 17,955,075 17,857,523 16,010,440 15,279,043 14,436,151 13,502,553 12,922,403 12,854,366 12,460,440 11,554,251 11,175,583 10,974,196 10,928,223 10,655,633 10,208,627 9,776,951 9,770,253 9,698,802 9,638,860 9,577,551 9,118,579 9,077,346 9,034,373 8,964,376 8,701,983 8,562,298 8,520,880 London Heathrow (LHR) Paris Roissy (CDG) Frankfurt (FRA) Amsterdam (AMS) Istanbul (IST) Madrid (MAD) Munich (MUC) Rome-Fiumicino (FCO) London Gatwick (LGW) Barcelona (BCN) Moscow Domodedovo (DME) Moscow (SVO) Paris Orly (ORY) Antalya (AYT) Zurich (ZHR) Copenhagen (CPH) Oslo (OSL) Palma de Mallorca (PMI) Vienna (VIE) Dusseldorf (DUS) Manchester (MAN) Stockholm-Arlanda (ARN) Dublin (DUB) Berlin (TXL) Brussels (BRU) Sahiba Istanbul (SAW) Milan-Malpensa (MXP) London Stansted (STN) Lisbon (LIS) Helsinki (HEL) Geneva (GVA) Hamburg (HAM) Malaga (AGP) St.. Petersburg (LED) Athens (ATH) Nice (NCE) Moscow VKO) Prague (PRG) Ankara (ESB) Warsaw (WAW) Izmir (ADB) Edinburgh (EDI) Gran Canaria (LPA) London Luton (LTN) Alicante (ALC) Stuttgart (STR) Birmingham (BHX) Cologne / Bonn (CGN) Milan Linate (LIN) Milan Bergamo (BGY) Tenerife Sur (TFS) Lyon (LYS) Budapest (BUD) Source: Airports Council International. Airport Traffic Report, 2013. Barcelona Committee for the Development of Air Routes (CDRA) Barcelona Report 2014. Tourism 45 Barcelona was the 23rd top international tourism destination The number of international tourists who chose Barcelona as a tourist destination in 2012 was almost 5.5 million, 0.5% more than in 2011, ac- cording to the 2012 Top Destination Cities report by Euromonitor Interna- tional. This made Barcelona the 23rd most preferred city in the world as a destination for international tourism and 6th most-preferred in Europe. Despite being strong positions, they are slightly down on those achieved by Barcelona the previous year (20th, and 5th, respectively) after being overtaken by Phuket, Taipei and Prague. It should be mentioned, however, that Barcelona remains above cities like Moscow, Beijing, Los Angeles, Budapest and Vienna in terms of in- ternational tourist numbers, and in the European ranking it’s positioned only behind London, Antalya, Paris, Istanbul, Rome and Prague. Accor- ding to European Cities Marketing Benchmarking Report 2013, Barcelona was the fifth top European city with most overnight stays by international tourists in 2012, behind London, Paris, Berlin and Rome and ahead of Madrid, Prague, Vienna and Munich. International tourists in world’s top cities in 2012 Barcelona’s position in the world rankings 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Barcelona Rome Paris Amsterdam Barcelona’s position in the world rankings 10.000 9.000 8.000 7.000 6.000 5.000 4.000 3.000 10 11 16 16 City Variation 2012/2011 (%) 18 20 23 23,770.2 21,345.7 15,822.6 15,461.0 13,360.8 13,339.5 12,100.4 11,618.0 10,296.6 9,780.8 8,820.1 8,670.7 8,023.0 7,879.6 7,217.0 6,852.9 6,564.3 6,561.2 6,547.7 6,539.7 6,298.0 5,987.0 5,459.1 5,036.2 5,035.4 5,017.0 4,821.6 4,328.7 4,289.2 4,126.3 4,111.3 4,067.0 3,923.1 3,792.5 3,789.2 3,754.2 3,660.3 3,535.2 3,500.0 3,438.4 3,381.7 3,323.7 3,210.0 3,166.5 3,164.9 3,127.3 3,098.6 2,999.9 2,981.4 2,977.0 6.5 7.7 14.6 2.3 3.4 6.7 9.6 8.9 -1.6 3.3 16.5 13.9 0.5 1.2 14.7 6.9 8.4 24.8 5.1 -2.2 5.9 4.5 0.5 13.6 -3.2 1.2 12,0 8,0 2.1 -0.4 -6,0 7.4 6.5 29.1 5.2 47.1 14.3 11.4 7.7 8.5 10.4 -0.3 3.7 3.3 0.9 9.8 -2.1 5.0 -2.9 26.7 Hong Kong Singapore Bangkok London Macau Kuala Lumpur Shenzhen New York Antalya Paris Istanbul Rome Dubai Guangzhou Phuket Mecca Pattaya Taipei Prague Shanghai Las Vegas Miami Barcelona Moscow Beijing Los Angeles Budapest Vienna Amsterdam Sofia Madrid Orlando Ho Chi Minh City Lima Berlin Tokyo Warsaw Chennai Cairo Nairobi Hangzhou Milan San Francisco Buenos Aires Venice Mexico City Dublin Seoul Mugla Mumbai Note: From 2008 there was a break in the series because the number of cities analyzed was reduced from 150 to 100. Source: Euromonitor International. Top Cities Destination Ranking. Note: Arrivals include both foreign visitors arriving in the city as first point of entry, and visitors who come to the city through a different entry point. Visitor means a person who is in the city at least 24 hours and less than 12 months and who stays in a private or group accomodation. Excluding day trippers or one day stays and domestic tourists. Source: Euromonitor International. Top Cities Destination Ranking. International tourists 2012 (thousands) 46 The Port of Barcelona retains its leadership in Europe and the fourth place worldwide The number of cruise passengers passing through the Port of Barcelona was 2.41 million in 2012, a decrease of 8.8% compared to 2011, but this re- sult still meant Barcelona retained its leading position in Europe for the 12th consecutive year. Also, the Port maintained its fourth position in the world rankings, behind the main three ports in the State of Florida (Miami, Port Canaveral and Port Everglades), but ahead of Venice, Southampton and Gal- veston. It is worth noting that in 2013 the number of cruise passengers at the Port of Barcelona rose to 2.6 million, which almost equals its previous 2011 record (2.65 million). Growth recovered strongly at almost 8% annually, and Barce- lona ranks as Spain’s top port in terms of number of cruise passengers. This positive trend is to get another boost thanks to the announcement by Royal Caribbean that one of its largest cruise boats, Oasis of the Seas, will dock in Barcelona in 2014, along with Allure of the Seas in 2015. Carnival plans to open a new terminal (its seventh) in the Port of Barcelona in 2016. In 2014 the Port of Barcelona was recognised by the prestigious Cruise In- sight publication (The global cruise market) during the Cruise Shipping Miami 2014 event. This year they won ‘Best Cruise Port of Departure’ and ‘Most Ef- ficient Terminal Operations’ categories. It also won ‘Best Port in Spain’ at the seventh edition of the Cruise Excellence awards. Cruises at world major ports in 2012 Variation 2012/2011 (%)City Port -8.0 20.2 0.7 -8.8 -0.6 5.1 30.7 -5.7 32.4 11.2 5.4 12.0 -3.1 -14.4 2.4 -14.6 -0.3 0.6 -4.4 8.2 1.9 3,774 3,761 3,690 2.409 1,775 1,529 1,208 1,172 976 974 934 914 913 850 840 810 797 667 482 476 28,906 Miami Port Canaveral Port Everglades Barcelona Venice Southampton Galveston New York New Orleans Tampa Seattle Long Beach Singapore Saints Copenhagen Savona Genova Vancouver Baltimore Cape Liberty (NJ) TOTAL Passengers 2011 (thousands) 4,100 3,130 3,664 2,642 1,786 1,455 924 1,243 737 876 886 816 942 993 820 948 799 663 504 440 28,368 Cruise passengers (millions) Barcelona Venice 2005 0 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 Barcelona’s position in the European ranking Source: Cruise Insight. Fall 2013 Source: Cruise Insight. Fall 2013 Passengers 2012 (thousands) Barcelona Report 2014. Tourism 47 48 Su st ai na bi lit y an d qu al ity o f l ife 49 Introduction Among Barcelona City Council’s main strategies for the period 2012-2015 we find the objective of making Barcelona a healthy city that fully inte- grates environmental concerns, urban planning, infrastructure and ICTs in order to move towards a self-sufficient energy model, with productive human-speed neighbourhoods within a hyper-connected, zero-emissi- ons city. In short, many slow and peaceful cities within a smart city that is there to serve people. Barcelona’s commitment to being a smart city means it fully integrates ecology, urbanism and technologies to improve sustainability and quality of life. The development of local programmes like Smart City Campus and Barcelona Urban Lab is related to several activities connected to energy efficiency and sustainability. Barcelona has gained international recognition as the fourth top smart city in Europe thanks to initiatives already deployed in the city, along with promotional activities and international collaboration, like the Smart City Expo Mobile Word Congress, City Protocol, and hosting the World Bank’s Forum of Smart Cities, according to the magazine Fast Co.Exist. Closely linked to urban development and sustainability, Barcelona’s Urban Mobility Plan 2013-2018 will help create superblocks or urban units that are based on specific sustainable mobility objectives in order to create quiet places, revitalize public space, generate urban greenery and encourage biodiversity, optimizing the use of resources and moving forward with smart management and citizen participation, among other issues. In the next four years five superblocks will be created, although the project’s aim is to spread to the rest of the city to create human spe- ed neighbourhoods. This objective is also shared by the Urban Mobility Plan, and the so-called Citizen Commitment to Sustainability 2012-2022 and the Greenery and Biodiversity Plan, which is included in the Council’s 2012-2105 strategy. Barcelona’s international positioning in the area of mobility is notewort- hy because of its use of sustainable transport, which represents 81% of inner-city trips, and its short commuting times thanks to a compact ur- ban structure. However, when analyzing the metropolitan area’s emissi- ons, energy consumption and system efficiency, as does one study on the future of urban mobility by the International Union of Public Transport, the results are less noteworthy: it comes 20th out of 84 agglomerations across the world, and 16th in Europe. It should be noted, however, that Barcelona won 7th place worldwide in terms of its support for electric mobility, an award given by the International Energy Agency. As for other international comparatives, according to the Guardian Citi- es Global Brand Barometer compiled by consultants Saffron, Barcelona has the sixth strongest city brand compared to 57 major cities around the world, having had a strong reputation for being an attractive city for quality of life for many years. The report State of World’s Cities 2012-2013, prepared by the UN Habitat agency, places Barcelona in fifth position for its quality of life compared to 69 cities in the world, while the Scorecard on Prosperity 2014 by the Toronto Board of Trade places metropolitan Barce- lona in fifth place in a ranking of 24 of the most attractive cities for work in Europe, Canada and the United States. With reference to companies’ commitment to the environment, in De- cember 2013 the province of Barcelona had 203 certification registrations and the city accounted for 78 of these, representing an increase of 18.7% and 32.2% respectively, compared to September 2012. Certifications re- corded in the province and the city of Barcelona represented 70.2% and 27% of all those registered in Catalonia. Finally, according to ISO Survey 2012, Spanish companies have received a total of 19,470 ISO 14001 ac- creditations, which makes Spain the fourth-top country in the world, be- hind China, Japan and Italy, and in terms of certification growth it was the second-fastest growing country in 2012 (+19.2%) after China. Finally, it’s worth noting Barcelona’s nomination as European Capital of Volunteering 2014, awarded as part of the European Year of Citizens 2013 by the European Volunteer Centre, who organized this event for the first time. In Barcelona there is wide support for this type of collaboration with more than 6,000 non-profit organizations based on volunteer work, and a long tradition of collaboration between Barcelona City Council and civil society. There is also a wide variety of spaces for reflection and debate aimed at getting different stakeholders involved in the preparation, evalu- ation and improvement of public policy. 50 Barcelona is Europe’s 4th top Smart City According to the magazine Fast Company, Barcelona is the fourth top smart city in Europe, behind Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Vienna, but still up four positions on the 2012 ranking and now ahead of Stockholm, Paris, Hamburg and London. Barcelona is today an international reference point in terms of both its leadership in promoting international smart cities and for the city’s nu- merous technology development initiatives aimed at smart city manage- ment. Internationally, the Catalan capital organizes the annual internati- onal congress on smart cities and it is also the promoter of the so-called City Protocol, a global standard for measuring progress on creating more sustainable and smart cities. Among the initiatives undertaken by Barcelona in its role as a testing ground for smart technologies developed by prestigious technology com- panies like Cisco Systems, GDF Suez, Schneider Electric, HP, Microsoft, Telefónica and Abertis Telecom, we can highlight pilot tests for intelligent traffic lights, traffic control, optical fibre, sensors in selective waste co- llection bins and noise sensors, the smart metres for water and gas for homes or LEDs street lighting. Other energy efficiency measures worth highlighting include support for electric vehicle take-up, a policy that pla- ces Barcelona seventh in the world in terms of electric mobility, accor- ding to the International Energy Agency (EV City Casebook 2012). Finally, the number of projects being developed as part of the world Mobile Ca- pital 2013-18 and the Open Data strategy complement the city’s commit- ment to technology to enhance citizen services. Smart and sustainable cities in 2013 20132012 Top 10 smart cities in Europe 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 8 10 Copenhagen Amsterdam Vienna Barcelona Paris Stockholm London Hamburg Berlin Helsinki 1 2 3 8 4 5 6 7 9 10 Source: Fast Company, The Smartest Cities in Europe. Ciutat intel·ligent t i n i ca t Actions and indicators c Ac o s an d nd i or s Ationsandindicator s Integration Education connection Creativity Sustainabl e transport Mu ltim oda l ac ces s IC T in tr an sp or ta tio n Cu ltu re a nd W el ln es s Security H ealth Open governm ent Infrastructure Online Services Urban p lanning Res our ce Ma nag em ent S m ar t b ui ld igs Quality of life So ci et y Environm ent Smart City Go ve rn m en t M obility Local and global P ro du ct iv ity Op po rt un ity Economy Barcelona Report 2014. Sustainability and quality of life 51 Barcelona 6th top city in terms of brand According to the Guardian Cities Barometer compiled by consultants Saffron, Barcelona is the sixth best city in the world in terms of its global brand power ahead of Rio de Janeiro, San Francisco, Istanbul, Milan and Berlin, in a ranking which evaluates 57 major cities around the world and which is led by Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris and Seoul. According Saffron, a city brand is represented by its average perception and the associations of ideas that people have about it, in other words, the image it transmits abroad. The study takes into account two fundamental aspects for determining the city brand: its physical assets, which include climate, tourist sites and attractions, infrastructure, the level of security and economic prosperity, and its media presence, including social network posts and mentions in the media. Barcelona achieved nine out of ten for its media coverage, only beaten by Los Angeles, New York, London and Paris, who all got 10 points, and 6.8 in terms of its assets. The results of this study placed Barcelona in a group of cities including Se- oul, San Francisco, Rio de Janeiro, Las Vegas, Istanbul and Dubai, which are located just below the top 4. This shows Barcelona is taking full advan- tage of its strengths, promoting information sharing via social networks, appearing in the media and managing the organization international events very well. Global city brands in the world in 2014 QualificationPosition City Los Angeles New York London Paris Seoul Barcelona Rio de Janeiro San Francisco Las Vegas Dubai Istanbul Madrid Chicago Singapore Bangkok Sydney Mexico City Buenos Aires Mumbai Sao Paulo Mecca Atlanta Melbourne Milan Berlin 1 2 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 18 17.7 17.3 17.2 15.9 15.8 15.3 15.2 15.2 14.6 14.6 14.4 14.3 14 13.6 13.4 13.4 13 13.3 12.2 12 11.8 11.7 11.4 11.4 Note: Overall Score between 1 and 20. Resulting from the sum of points obtained over a maximum of 10 categories for assets and media coverage. Source: Guardian Cities Global Brand Barometer, 2014. Saffron Brand Consultants 52 City classifi cation Source: Guardian Cities Global Brand Barometer, 2014. Saffron Brand Consultants Leaders Emerging Below potential 10 0 20 4 6 8 10 12 Competitors To take into account Shanghai As se ts Media mentions Singapore Sydney Madrid Seoul Los Angeles Tokyo Lisbon / Washington Milan / Berlin Bangalore Bangkok San Francisco Barcelona Chicago Mumbay Istanbul/Abu Dhabi Rome Hanoi Sao Paulo Mecca Vienna Doha Marrakech Sofi a Salvador Beijing Venice Manau Nueva Delhi Abu Dhabi Copenhagen Tel Aviv Seattle Vancouver Riyhad Kuala Lumpur Santiago Atlanta Melbourne Mexico City Buenos Aires Rio de Janeiro Las Vegas London Paris Oslo Krakow 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Chittagong Cape Town Nairobi Lagos Lima Algiers New York Barcelona Report 2014. Sustainability and quality of life 53 Quality of life and urban prosperity in 2012 Position City 1 2 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 5 11 11 11 11 11 16 16 16 16 16 Barcelona, amongst top cities in the world in terms of quality of life Barcelona is fifth in quality of life in a ranking of 69 cities across the world, according to the report State of the World’s Cities 2012-2013, prepared by UN-Habitat, just behind Tokyo, Stockholm, Paris and Oslo and above cities like Seoul, London, Vienna or Amsterdam. According to the UN agency, the priority elements needed to achieve better quality of life in cities, regard- less of their level of development, are economic security, efficient public services, quality public space, health care and adequate housing, which are the criteria used as the basis of the overall assessment. Quality of life is one component that the UN-Habitat report takes into acco- unt to develop its index of overall city prosperity, which also includes pro- ductivity, infrastructure, environment and equity. The UN agency’s analysis shows Barcelona is in 17th place in the overall prosperity ranking, having been placed 14th in terms of infrastructure, and coming 20th, 22nd and 28th in the categories productivity, environment and equity, respectively. Prosperity and urban categories (positioning of Barcelona) Prosperity Productivity Quality of life Infrastructure Environment Equality 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 17 20 5 14 22 28 Index* Tokyo Stockholm Paris Oslo Barcelona Toronto Helsinki Seoul London Milan Auckland Athens Vienna Melbourne Amsterdam Copenhagen Dublin Lisbon Budapest New York Brussels Warsaw Zurich Yerevan Chisinau Shanghai Beijing Almaty Moscow Sao Paulo 1 2 2 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 17 17 20 21 21 23 24 24 26 26 28 29 30 0.931 0.925 0.925 0.914 0.912 0.907 0.905 0.903 0.898 0.895 0.889 0.885 0.882 0.875 0.872 0.871 0.867 0.867 0.867 0.866 0.864 0.864 0.858 0.850 0.850 0.836 0.836 0.822 0.813 0.803 *Index has values between 0 - 1 Source: State of World’s Cities 2012-2013. UN-Habitat Source: State of World’s Cities 2012-2013. UN-Habitat 54 Barcelona, among the top five most attractive places to work for the sixth consecutive year According to the Scorecard on Prosperity 2014 developed by Toronto Board of Trade, Barcelona is fifth in a ranking of the most attractive places to work compared to 24 of the top urban agglomerations in Europe, North America, and Asia. It is ahead of Vancouver, Montreal and Madrid in a classification led by Paris, London and Toronto. The Barcelona area is positioned among the top five in this ranking for the sixth consecutive year since the ranking was first published in 2009. According to the report, Barcelona’s attractiveness comes mainly from its good weather, the proportion of the population between of 24 to 34, the low level of crime, its transport efficiency, sustainability and its moderate rate of income inequalities. However, in the global ranking that evaluates the economic situation, Barcelona ranked 24th because of the recession. Attractive metropolitan areas for working in across the globe in 2014 Qualification 2013 Position City Paris London Toronto Calgary Barcelona Vancouver Madrid Montreal Stockholm Sydney Oslo Halifax Hong Kong Berlin Seattle Tokyo New York Dallas Chicago Milan Boston San Francisco Los Angeles Shanghai 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 0.66 0.64 0.63 0.61 0.59 0.57 0.55 0.54 0.54 0.54 0.53 0.52 0.49 0.48 0.48 0.48 0.48 0.45 0.44 0.44 0.43 0.43 0.42 0.42 A A A A B B B B C C C C C C D D D D D D D D D D 0.68 0.66 0.60 0.58 0.62 0.53 0.63 0.52 0.53 0.58 0.55 0.50 0.47 0.47 0.49 0.49 0.49 0.47 0.44 0.44 0.44 0.44 0.43 0.45 Source: Toronto Board of Trade’s Scorecard on Prosperity. Various years Barcelona’s position in terms of being an attractive place to work 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2 1 5 3 4 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 5 *The classification is made based on an index that takes the value between 0 and 1 and it is the average of the standardized scores on 15 indicators which assess the attractiveness of the metropolitan area for labour. Source: Toronto Board of TradeScorecard on Prosperity 2014 Qualification 2014* Barcelona Report 2014. Sustainability and quality of life 55 Best cities in the world in terms of urban mobility in 2013 Barcelona and its hinterland is ranked 20th amongst the world’s metropolis The report Future of Urban Mobility 2.0 by the International Union of Trans- port Public (UITP) places metropolitan Barcelona in 20th position in the world and 15th in Europe in a ranking of 84 of the world’s urban agglomera- tions and 26 from Europe. Hong Kong, Stockholm, Amsterdam, Copenha- gen and Vienna lead the classification. The Catalan capital obtained a score equal to or very close to those of Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo and Frankfurt, and scored higher than Prague, Istanbul and Beijing. Compared to 2011, Barcelona lost six positions mainly due to the incorporation of conurbations from central and northern Europe, which have efficient transport systems. The indicators show that metropolitan Barcelona stands out in a positive way because of its policies and strategies aimed at the public sector, its share of zero emission transportation across different types of mobility, a successful bike sharing scheme, the density of road space, improvements in mortality related to traffic accidents, and commuting times to work. On the other hand, it needs to improve in terms of reducing pollution, the high price of public transportation, leveraging carpooling and the share of public transport in the overall distribution of mobility, amongst others. According to the Scorecard on Prosperity 2014 by the Toronto Board of Trade, Barcelona is the sixth top urban area with lowest average commuting times among the 24 cities analyzed in Europe, Canada and the United States, with an average of 56 minutes travel time. In addition, it is 8th in terms of use of sustainable means to get to work. These favourable results are related to the city’s compact urban model and public policies to boost sustainable mobility, which have been promoted by the City Council in recent years. Ranking 2013 City 1 2 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 5 11 11 11 11 11 16 16 16 16 16 Index* Hong Kong Stockholm Amsterdam Copenhagen Vienna Singapore Paris Zurich London Helsinki Munich Stuttgart Berlin Wuhan Madrid Hanover Brussels Seoul Tokyo Barcelona Shanghai Frankfurt Prague Warsaw Nantes Shenzhen Istanbul Beijing Canton Santiago de Chile 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 20 22 23 23 25 25 27 27 27 30 58.2 57.4 57.2 56.4 56 55.6 55.4 54.7 53.2 53.2 53 51.9 51.7 5.1 50.3 50.1 49.7 49.3 49.2 49.1 49.1 48.8 47.8 47.8 47.7 47.7 47.2 47.2 47.2 47.1 *The index takes values between 0 and 100 Source: Report “Future of Urban Mobility 2.0”, UITP and Arthur D. Little. Barcelona’s positioning in European mobility indicator ranking* P ub lic S ec to r St ra te gy M ob ili ty Q uo ta ze ro e m is si on s B ic yc le s ha ri ng U rb an d en si ty of th e ag gl om er at io n R oa d de ns ity Ev ol ut io n m ob ili ty ze ro e m is si on s Tr av el ti m e to w or k Em is si on s of C O 2 Tr af fic r el at ed d ea th s Above the European average 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 On the European average 1 4 5 6 8 9 9 10 10 P ri ce s an d co st s 57 Introduction The economic recovery sped up as we moved through 2013, while the in- flation rate began the year at high levels, above 3% and, therefore, higher than price stability objectives set by the ECB in the medium term (2%). As the months went by this rate lost pace to stand at 0.2% in Catalonia in December and 0.3% in the province of Barcelona. This means there could be a risk of deflation. This decreasing inflation trend which puts average inflation in 2013 at +1.9% in the province of Barcelona is explained firstly by the fact that last year it had been pushed upwards by factors like an increase in VAT, the prices of medicines and university fees; and secondly, by the falls in oil prices and regulated prices, like electricity, and genera- lly because of weak domestic demand that has pushed consumer prices down. Barcelona remains competitive in terms of industrial land prices, office rental prices and retail leases which is good for attracting business to Barcelona because new firms set up here, and those already here tend to stay. Office rental rates dropped, while industrial land prices stabilized in 2013, which means the city is located in the lower and middle bands res- pectively when taking into account prices in benchmark cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Experts predict a recovery in contracting in Barcelona in 2014. With regard to retail, rental prices are holding or in- creasing in the city’s main shopping streets, reflecting strong demand and Barcelona’s growing appeal in the luxury segment. Meanwhile, VAT rates and corporation tax rates remained stable in 2013, after 2012’s increases. However, these rates mean Spain is in the top band compared to average rates in the European Union. According to the study Paying Taxes 2014 by PwC and the World Bank, there has been an increase in the tax burden of Spanish companies due to the elimination of tax benefits on fixed asset depreciation and a restriction on tax carryforward compensation on los- ses. A study by Mercer Human Resource Consulting shows how Barcelo- na has maintained a competitive cost of living compared to other cities around the world, and although it climbed one position in the ranking in 2013, it is below cities like Madrid, Frankfurt and Munich and its position before the recession. Regarding wage levels, Barcelona is in the mid ran- ge in terms of gross salaries in Europe and in the world, above cities like Rome, Seoul, Dubai, Lisbon and Tel Aviv. 58 Barcelona Report 2014. Prices and costs 59 Cost of living in the world’s cities in 2013 Source: Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, City Rankings 2013 Barcelona’s position 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 Highest costs Lowest costs 31 38 49 66 31 56 43 56 The cost of living in Barcelona remains competitive An annual survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting shows Barcelona was 84th in terms of costs of living in world cities in 2013, while in 2012 it stood in 85th position and at the beginning of the crisis it was in 31st spot. So Barcelona scaled one place in the ranking after four consecutive years in decline. However, it is still in a better competitive position than before the recession and it is below Madrid, Frankfurt and Munich. This index is created using the prices below of 200 basic products and services from 214 cities worldwide. Barcelona’s changes in terms of cost of living can probably be explained by record low inflation (0.3% in the province of Barcelona in December 2013), which was almost offset by the euro’s increased value against the dollar, an important factor in any comparison with the cost of living of New York. This dual opposite effect means Barcelona only rose one position in the ranking between 2012 and 2013, after falling sharply in previous years. Barcelona’s cost of living keeps it in a competitive position amongst the main cities in Europe and the world. . Ranking 2013Ranking 2012 City 85 84 Luanda Moscow Tokyo N’Djamena Singapore Hong Kong Geneva Zurich Bern Sydney Oslo Osaka Seoul Shanghai Beijing Melbourne Copenhagen Perth Sao Paulo Caracas Libreville Victoria St. Petersburg New York London Nagoya Canberra Brisbane Rio de Janeiro Shenzhen Niamey Tel Aviv Kinshasa Adelaide Guangzhou Lagos Paris Abidjan Bamako Brazzaville Milan Djibouti Stockholm Rome Noumea Conakry Douala Vienna Abuja Banghi Barcelona 2 4 1 8 6 9 5 6 14 11 18 3 22 16 17 15 21 19 12 29 20 50 28 33 25 10 23 24 13 30 34 31 36 27 31 39 37 41 39 43 38 44 46 42 47 53 53 48 64 58 85 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 9 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 29 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 42 44 45 46 46 48 49 50 84 Source: Mercer Human Resource Consulting, Worldwide Cost of Living Survey, City Rankings 2013 60 Corporate tax and VAT in countries around the world in 2013 The rate of VAT and corporation tax remain stable The corporate tax rate in Spain remained at 30% in 2013 and as such it continues to be in the higher tax band compared to reference countries and above the European Union average, although this also rose from 22.5% in 2012 to 22.75% in 2013, according to the Corporate Tax Rate Survey by KPMG. In 2013 the corporate tax rate remained stable in most countries surveyed. It rose in India, Luxembourg, Greece, Slovakia and Cyprus, but declined in South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland and Slovenia. Also, the VAT rate remained stable at 21% in Spain in 2013, after rising the previous year. It remains on the high side, although there have been similar increases in many countries, such as Finland, Italy, Slovenia, the Czech Re- public, France, Cyprus, Israel and India. These increases ranged between 0.04 in France and 2 percentage in Cyprus and Slovenia. According to a study by PwC and the World Bank called Paying Taxes 2014, Spanish companies pay a total tax rate of 58.6%. The study attributes the increase in Spanish firms’ tax burden to the suppression of tax allowances for depreciation on tangible fixed assets and restriction of compensation carryforwards. 36.2% of money companies pay in tax is attributed to corpo- ration tax, 62.8% to national health and similar employment related taxes and 1% for the rest of taxes. 30.0 33.3 25.0 29.6 18.0 25.0 29.2 34.0 26.0 24.5 28.0 22.0 25.0 19.0 23.0 19.0 15.0 17.0 25.0 31.4 23.012.5 ESP FRA POR ITA GER SUI HOL LUX BEL GRE FINNOR SUE DIN POL ESL R.TX HON LET ESL AUS UK IRL United States Japan Argentina Belgium India France Italy Australia Spain Tunisia Germany Luxembourg South Africa Norway Canada Greece Austria Denmark Israel Netherlands Portugal China Finland South Korea UK Slovakia Sweden Hungary Poland Czech Republic Switzerland Slovenia Hong Kong Latvia Ireland Cyprus --- 5.0 21.0 21.0 13.0 20.0 22.0 10.0 21.0 18.0 19.0 15.0 14.0 25.0 5.0 23.0 20.0 25.0 18.0 21.0 23.0 17.0 24.0 10.0 20.0 20.0 25.0 27.0 23.0 21.0 8.0 22.0 --- 21.0 23.0 19.0 40.0 38.0 35.0 34.0 34.0 33.3 31.4 30.0 30.0 30.0 29.6 29.2 28.0 28,0 26.0 26.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 25.0 24.5 24.2 23.0 23.0 22.0 19.0 19.0 19.0 18.0 17.0 16.5 15.0 12.5 12.5 Country VAT Tax Base (%) Corporate tax in 2013 (%) Company Tax Base (%) So ur ce K P M G , K P M G ’s C or po ra te a nd In di re ct T ax R at e Su rv ey 2 01 3 19.0 Note: The original database contained 130 countries, although the table shows a sample of benchmark countries. Source: KPMG, KPMG’s Corporate and Indirect Tax Rate Survey 2013 Barcelona Report 2014. Prices and costs 61 Prices in Barcelona fall for the fourth consecutive year In 2013 Barcelona’s office rental rates dropped for the fourth consecutive year to stand at € 213 per square meter per year, a smaller fall (of -1.39% per year) than that recorded in 2012 (around -3%), according to the EMEA Rents and Yields Report, prepared by Richard Ellis. These price trends mean Barcelona ranked 45th from a selection of 55 cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, in other words, it is in the lower price range, yet above The Hague, Utrecht, Johannesburg, Bratislava and Zagreb, but with much lower prices than those of the large European capitals. The metropo- lis with highest office rental prices was London, both the West End and the City, which are placed first and fifth in the ranking, respectively, and Mos- cow, Paris and Geneva, which are in the second, third, and fourth positions in the group of cities analyzed. In terms of office rental trends, Barcelona shows lower rates of decline among the 11 cities where rentals dropped in 2013; however, prices have risen in 17 cities, and in 27 others in the sample they stabilized. The highest increases in 2013 were recorded in Dublin and London’s West End, while the largest falls in rentals were in Milan, Geneva and Prague. Forecasts by real estate consultants like Cushman & Wakefield expect the number of office deals to rise in Barcelona in 2014, with the likes of operations like the recent installation of the American technological solutions company ADP in Poblenou, which has leased 6,800 m2. Office rental rates for cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa in 2013 Performance of offices in European cities (IV quarter 2013) Office rental (€/m²)City Note: The yield refers to the return on investment in the offices sector in each city. Source: CB Richard Ellis, EMEA Rents and Yields Q4 2013 (EMEA: Europe, Middle East and Africa) Ranking London-West End Moscow Paris Geneva London city Zurich Dubai St. Petersburg Oslo Stockholm Milan Frankfurt Istanbul Rome Manchester Helsinki Munich Abu Dhabi Edinburgh Birmingham Dublin Bristol Glasgow Amsterdam Düsseldorf Warsaw Gothenburg Vienna Lyon Kyiv Madrid Hamburg Brussels Athens Berlin Marseille Tel Aviv Prague Budapest Rotterdam Copenhagen Lisbon Lille Bucharest Barcelona The Hague Utrecht Johannesburg Bratislava Zagreb Belgrade Aarhus Belfast Oporto Thessaloniki 1,330.50 897.06 800.00 790.99 765.04 707.73 646.56 598.04 516.98 502.25 480.00 456.00 403.68 400.00 399.15 396.00 390.00 386.15 379.19 379.19 377.00 365.89 359.24 340.00 330.00 312.00 308.20 303.00 300.00 296.03 294.00 288.00 285.00 276.00 270.00 270.00 261.34 240.00 240.00 225.00 224.50 222.00 220.00 216.00 213.00 210.00 205.00 202.38 192.00 180.00 180.00 174.24 166.31 144.00 126.00 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 8.11 0.00 -3.61 -5.00 4.55 0.00 0.00 0.00 5.41 0.00 -5.88 0.00 4.65 -2.44 0.00 3.53 3.17 0.00 5.56 0.00 27.36 0.00 0.00 0.00 5.77 -3.70 8.00 2.02 5.26 0.00 -2.97 0.00 0.00 0.00 2.27 0.00 -1.82 -4.76 0.00 7.14 -1.47 0.00 10.00 -2.70 -1.39 0.00 2.50 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.96 0.00 0.00 0.00 Barcelona 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 6.25% 5.75% 5.70% 5.45% 4.55% 7% Dublin Lyon Amsterdam Munich Source: CB Richard Ellis, EMEA Rents and Yields Q4 2013 (EMEA: Europe, Middle East and Africa) Annual growth (%) 62 Barcelona’s retail premises remain competitive Barcelona is still attractive for retailers thanks to competitive lease prices for com- mercial premises in 2013. According to Main Streets Across The World, a study by Cushman & Wakefield, the most expensive street in Barcelona and throughout Spain, Portal de l’Angel, continues to be in 15th position in the world rankings for the second year after dropping two positions in 2011. The rental price of a shop in Portal de l’Angel is € 3,180 / m2/year, which is the same as in 2012. Main streets in the most expensive cities, like Fifth Avenue in New York, or Champs Elysees in Pa- ris or in New Bond Street in London, retail price rentals are 6, 4 and 3 times more expensive than the Portal de l’Angel in Barcelona, respectively. Overall, of the 334 cities analyzed, 285 have seen rental prices for retail premises stay stable or rise. This is the case of Barcelona, where rentals have remained the same in Portal del Angel (0%), while down Passeig de Gràcia (2.4%) and Rambla Catalonia (6.3%) they rose. In particular, luxury shops in the city are paying higher rentals due to limited space and strong demand. Improvements to infrastructure in Barcelona, like new links to Asia, the Middle East and Brazil, and improvements to the stock of high-end hotels, cruises and sporting events all mean Barcelona is more attractive for tourists with high purchasing power, which in turn fosters consumption in the luxury shops in Barcelona. Retail rental rates in cities around the world in 2013 Source: Cushman & Wakefield Price of rental premises (t/m2/ year) Rambla de Cataluña (Barcelona) Kalverstraat (Ámsterdam) Paseo de Grácia (Barcelona) Portal de l’Àngel (Barcelona) Preciados (Madrid) (Munich) Grafton Street (Dublín) Via Montenapoleone (Milan) Av. de los Campos Elyseos (Paríis) Quinta Avenida (New York) 2013 2012 2011 0 5,000 10,000 15,000 20,000 25,000 2010 2009 63 City StreetCountry2012 2013 Rental of retail premises (€/m²/year) Hong Kong (China) U.S. France UK Japan Italy Switzerland Australia South Korea Austria Germany Russia China Brazil Spain Singapore Netherlands Norway Malaysia Israel Colombia Canada Ireland Ukraine Denmark Czech Republic New Zealand India Turkey Taiwan Greece Finland Vietnam Belgium Sweden United Arab Emirates Libya Luxembourg Chile Kazakhstan South Africa Hungary Portugal Argentina Poland Thailand Indonesia Channel Islands Oman Lithuania Mexico Peru Slovenia Slovakia Romania Ecuador Latvia Venezuela Bulgaria Republic of Macedonia Bahrain Estonia Philippines Jordan 1 2 3 6 4 8 7 5 9 11 10 - 14 12 15 16 18 22 19 21 24 20 17 23 25 27 - 26 - 31 28 30 33 32 34 40 36 37 38 46 - 41 45 44 43 48 47 42 49 54 51 50 52 57 52 55 56 58 59 - 60 61 - 62 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 28 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 24,983 20,702 13,255 8,666 8,152 7,500 7,236 7,042 6,063 4,440 4,320 3,846 3,610 3,343 3,180 2,930 2,900 2,835 2,673 2,663 2,631 2,512 2,389 2,308 2,279 2,160 2,139 2,090 2,077 1,981 1,980 1,920 1,846 1,800 1,676 1,578 1,539 1,500 1,393 1,292 1,116 1,080 1,050 1,034 996 923 908 899 839 804 785 785 690 684 600 591 540 489 480 480 392 360 310 308 Hong Kong New York Paris London Tokyo Milan Zurich Sydney Seoul Vienna Munich Moscow Beijing Sao Paulo Barcelona Singapore Amsterdam Oslo Kuala Lumpur Tel Aviv Bogota Toronto Dublin Kiev Copenhagen Prague Auckland New Delhi Istanbul Taipei Athens Helsinki Ho Chi Minh City Brussels Stockholm Dubai Beirut Luxembourg Santiago Almaty Johannesburg Budapest Lisbon Buenos Aires Warsaw Bangkok Jakarta St Helier Muscat Vilnius Mexico City Lima Ljubljana Bratislava Bucharest Quito Riga Caracas Sofia Skopje Manama Tallinn Manila Amman Causeway Bay 5th Avenue Avenue des Champs-Elysées New Bond Street Ginza Via Montenapoleone Bahnhofstrasse Pitt Street Mall Myeongdong Kohlmarkt Kaufingerstrabe Stoleshnikov Wangfujing Iguatemi Shopping Portal del Ángel Orchard Road Kalverstraat Karl Johans Gate Pavillon KL Ramat Aviv Shopping Centre Bloor Street Grafton Street Kreschatik Street Stoget Na Pnrikope/Wenceslas Square CBD Khan Market Bagdat Caddesi (Asia) ZhongXiao E. Road Ermou City Centre Shopping Centre Rue Neuve Biblioteksgatan Shopping Centre ABC Centre Achrafieh Gran Rue Downtown ( Paseo Ahumada) Shopping Centre Sandton City Vaci Utca Chiado Florida ul. Nowy Swiat City Centre Shopping Centre King Street Shopping Centre Vilnius Masaryk Avenue Shopping Centre Copova Shopping Centre Bulevardul Magheru Av. Naciones Unidas Shopping Centre Shopping Centre Vitosha Blvd Shopping Centre Shopping Centre Shopping Centre Fort Bonifacio City Center (BCD) Note: This ranking includes only the most expensive shopping street in each country. Source: Cushman & Wakefield, Main Streets Across the World 2013-14 64 Stable prices in Barcelona According to the report EMEA Rents and Yields by Richard Ellis, the rental price of industrial land in Barcelona was 72 € per square meter in 2013, cheaper than benchmark cities like Geneva, London, Zurich, Stockholm, Paris, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. This price put Barcelona in the middle of the range of cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, according to this prestigious consultancy. The prevailing rental prices of industrial land in cities included in the report by Richard Ellis, amongst them Barcelona, was stable. There were some exceptions such as Oslo, Zurich, Dubai, Amsterdam, Birmingham, The Hague, Utrecht and Marseille, where prices went up; in Rome, Milan and Athens prices dropped, which is due to the impact of the recession on business and demand in the south of Europe. In the case of Barcelona, there was price stability in 2013, which was a turning point after years of price declines, which is related to improvements in industrial activity in 2013. Industrial land lease prices in cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa in 2013 Return on industrial land in European cities (IV quarter 2013) Note: The yield refers to the return on investment for industrial land for each city. Source: CBRE. EMEA Rents and Yields Q4 2013 (EMEA. Europe. Middle East and Africa) Barcelona 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 6% 7% 8% 9% 8.25% 8.25% 7.00% 6.70% 6.25% Dublin Lyon Amsterdam Munich City Annual growth (%) Rental price of industrial land (€/m2/year) 2013 193.07 166.53 166.31 159.07 138.00 133.22 104.66 102.73 97.18 90.00 87.75 83.16 79.83 78.00 76.50 75.00 74.40 74.02 73.18 72.00 70.00 70.00 70.00 68.40 66.00 62.40 60.55 60.00 60.00 57.60 56.96 56.07 55.00 54.00 54.00 54.00 51.00 51.00 50.00 48.00 48.00 46.00 45.00 44.00 42.50 39.00 39.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 20.00 0.73 6.67 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 35.71 4.17 0.00 0.00 0.00 10.29 0.00 0.00 4.76 0.00 0.00 7.69 2.94 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -8.33 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 -3.85 0.00 -2.44 0.00 0.00 0.00 1.19 -7.14 0.00 Abu Dhabi Geneva London Oslo Helsinki Zurich Moscow Stockholm St. Petersburg Paris Dubai Glasgow Edinburgh Munich Manchester Amsterdam Frankfurt Johannesburg Birmingham Barcelona Rotterdam The Hague Utrecht Hamburg Zagreb Düsseldorf Istanbul Dublin Madrid Vienna Copenhagen Kyiv Rome Berlin Budapest Belgrade Prague Bratislava Milan Warsaw Bucharest Brussels Lille Lyon Marseille Athens Lisbon Source: CBRE. EMEA Rents and Yields Q4 2013 (EMEA. Europe. Middle East and Africa) 65 Barcelona remains in a mid-range position in Europe and the world In 2012 gross salaries in Barcelona increased although by a smaller percentage than in 2011. Net wages decreased, however, due to tax and contributions to Social Security, which is different to what happened in 2011, according to the report Prices & Earnings Around The Globe, compi- led by UBS, which analyzes the trends in wage levels in 72 cities across the world compared to New York. The wage level evolution in 2012 shows a varied trend, with Barcelona varying just one position from 30th in 2011 to 29th in 2012 in the world rankings, and from 20th to 19th in the European ranking. So Barcelona is located in the mid range in terms of gross salary in Europe and the world, above cities like Madrid, Rome, Seoul, Dubai, Lisbon and Tel Aviv, but be- low Milan and Lyon. Salaries in the world’s cities in 2012 N ot e: T he e ffe ct iv e ho ur ly w ag e is c al cu la te d fr om 1 4 pr of es si on s. N et p ay is c al cu la te d af te r ta xe s an d so ci al s ec ur ity c on tr ib ut io ns . So ur ce : P ric es & E ar ni ng s ar ou nd th e gl ob e, U B S Note: The effective hourly wage is calculated from 14 professions. Net pay is calculated after taxes and social security contributions. Source: Prices & Earnings around the Globe, UBS Gross salary index (New York = 100) DublinMilan Amsterdam MunichBarcelona 70.3 60.0 75.0 75.0 82.0 59.6 52.0 New York=100 77.7 78.3 91.5 82.7 94.5 83.0 66.7 58.1 2010 2011 2012 Net Salary (New York = 100)City Zurich Geneva Copenhagen Oslo Luxembourg New York Sydney Tokyo Munich Frankfurt Los Angeles Chicago Stockholm Miami Brussels Helsinki Vienna London Berlin Amsterdam Paris Dublin Toronto Montreal Milan Lyon Nicosia Auckland Barcelona Madrid Rome Seoul Dubai Lisbon Tel Aviv Hong Kong Johannesburg Athens Ljubljana Taipei Manama Moscow Sao Paulo Tallinn Istanbul Bratislava Rio de Janeiro Doha Prague Riga Warsaw Buenos Aires Santiago de Chile Bogota Lima Vilnius Kuala Lumpur Shanghai Budapest Caracas Beijing Bucharest Bangkok Sofia Mexico Cairo Kiev Nairobi Mumbai Manila Jakarta Delhi 132.4 119.2 93.4 97.4 109.7 100.0 98.0 90.4 76.0 78.1 80.9 80.6 78.1 79.9 59.5 74.2 70.8 75.2 70.1 69.4 73.6 78.8 68.6 66.2 61.5 64.7 68.5 63.5 58.7 57.9 48.2 50.2 64.2 42.6 43.5 49.8 38.9 40.0 32.0 39.3 38.8 33.8 30.5 28.3 28.2 27.3 27.5 34.4 25.1 21.4 21.9 25.4 21.5 22.0 23.1 21.2 22.0 21.6 18.1 23.4 18.0 13.5 17.4 13.6 15.1 12.1 11.2 10.2 9.3 8.1 9.2 8.3 131.1 123.6 123.1 119.1 105.4 100.0 94.1 92.4 91.5 88.2 86.3 83.3 82.9 81.8 81.5 80.2 80.2 79.5 79.2 78.3 78.1 77.7 76.8 76.2 70.3 64.2 60.8 59.8 59.6 57.0 55.1 54.8 49.6 44.0 43.0 42.8 41.5 41.4 36.4 33.3 30.5 30.4 30.1 28.0 27.9 27.7 27.2 26.6 24.5 24.2 23.8 23.6 22.6 22.3 22.2 21.7 21.5 20.9 20.1 20.0 17.0 14.8 14.6 13.8 13.7 11.0 10.5 10.4 8.5 8.0 7.9 7.6 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 Gross Salary (New York = 100) Ranking 2012 66 La bo ur m ar ke t a nd tr ai ni ng 67 Introduction The second half of 2013 saw the beginning of a modest recovery in the European Union economy and euro zone, along with improved stakehol- der expectations. The result is a degree of stabilization in labour market indicators after two years of falling employment and increased unem- ployment in most member countries. In terms of this general trend, we can find significant differences in countries like Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden, which have seen increases in employment rates, and other places like Belgium, which have remained stable, and a third category characterised by a loss of jobs across much of southern Europe. In the case of Catalonia, the employment rate in 2013 is below the Eu- ropean average for the fifth consecutive year and the rate of unemploy- ment is twice that of the EU average despite slowing down. Experts are predicting a slow recovery of those jobs lost during the crisis. Given this context, the number of jobs in Barcelona stabilized in 2013 af- ter five years of net job destruction and adjustments in the labour mar- ket were more moderate than in the wider region. Indeed, the city en- ded the year with nearly a million Social Security members in the fourth quarter of 2013, an activity rate of 79%, which is almost 7 points up on the European rate, and an employment rate that stood at 65.4%, while the unemployment rate dropped to 17.2% the same year, which is still well below averages seen in Catalonia and Spain. The Council has developed a policy to stimulate employment via pro- grammes that promote economic growth in the city. These stimulus policy measures aimed at growth and economic development were part of the Strategic Framework 2012-2015, and these are managed by Bar- celona Activa. The city is committed to trying to reduce unemployment, by boosting the employability of individuals with regards the market’s needs, and employment through the city base companies ability to gene- rate more and better quality employment opportunities for people. Barcelona and its hinterland’s strength is its critical mass of highly- qualified human resources. In 2013, the percentage of male and female workers with a university education in Catalonia grew to 41.8% and 46.4% respectively, which were well above the average of the European Union. Moreover, Barcelona is still a benchmark in terms of business education. It is the only European city with two business schools (IESE and ESADE) in the top ten business schools on the continent, according to The Finan- cial Times and The Economist Intelligence Unit. In 2014 both schools main- tained their positions in the FT rankings. 68 Source: Eurostat and Idescat Falls in the employment rate in Catalonia slows In 2013 the employment rate in the EU was stable compared to the previous three years, and we can see a significant difference between employment growth rates where this indicator is highest compared to falling rates in the majority of those regions that have rates below the European average. The latter is the case of Spain and Catalonia, where employment rates re- main amongst the lowest in the table, after five years of consecutive falls sin- ce 2008. The employment rate in Catalonia was 59% in 2013, with an annual drop of 0.5%, which is below the European average for the fifth year in a row. This is, however, a softer fall than that recorded in 2012, which was 3%. Em- ployment rates in Catalonia remain above Spain’s by 4.6%, and also those of regions like Rome, Montpellier and Brussels. On the other hand, the female employment rate dropped to 55.6% in Catalonia in 2013, meaning it lies below the EU average and it is still far off the leading regions in Europe, whose rates are around 70%, although it is still above the Spanish average. As for Barcelona, the overall employment rate was 65.4% in the fourth quar- ter of 2013, higher than the European rate and still clearly above the average for Catalonia (61.7%) and Spain (55.9%). The female employment rate stood at 63.8%, a drop on 2012, but still more than 4% above the EU average (59%). Employment rate in European regions in 2013 Employment rate (%) 2010 2011 2012200820052002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2009 Catalonia Spain EU 75 70 65 60 55 50 2013 Barcelona Report 2014. Labour market and training 69 Upper Bavaria (Munich) Stockholm (Stockholm) Oslo (OSLO) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) North Holland (Amsterdam) Denmark (Copenhagen) Darmstadt (Frankfurt) Hamburg (Hamburg) Prague (Prague) Southern Finland (Helsinki) South Holland (Rotterdam) Eastern Scotland (Edinburgh) Inner London (London) Southwest Scotland (Glasgow) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Estonia (Tallinn) Berlin (Berlin) Vienna (Vienna) Rhône-Alpes (LYON) Ile de France (Paris) Greater Manchester (Manchester) Mazowsze (Warsaw) Sofia (Sofia) Latvia (Riga) Lombardy (Milan) EUROPEAN UNION Lithuania (VILNIUS) Central Hungary (BUDAPEST) West Midlands (Birmingham) Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (Marseille) Basque Country (Bilbao) Madrid (Madrid) South and east (Dublin) Lisbon (Lisbon) Catalonia (BARCELONA) South - Muntenia (Bucharest) Lazio (Rome) Languedoc-Roussillon (Montpellier) Spain Valencia (VALENCIA) Brussels (Brussels) Attica (Athens) Istanbul (Istanbul) Ankara (ANKARA) 1.1 0.5 -0.8 1.0 -0.5 0.6 0.7 1,1 1.3 -0.3 -0.5 2.7 2.3 3.3 0.3 1.0 0.4 -0.1 0.5 0.7 0.1 0.1 0.4 1.7 1.1 0.2 1.0 0.1 -1.0 0.4 -0.7 -1.9 0.7 -1.4 -0.4 1.2 -1.1 1.4 -0.9 -0.6 -0.1 -2.0 1.5 0.6 73.5 75.6 74.2 70.8 71.5 72.3 69.2 70.9 65.7 72.0 67.7 68.8 62.8 66.4 63.5 65.7 65.7 63.8 62.4 63.2 62.0 60.1 62.8 63.4 57.3 58.7 62.8 57.6 56.5 57.5 57.4 57.4 56.8 59.3 55.6 50.6 48.5 52.9 49.7 47.4 48.5 42.2 28.1 26.0 0.9 0.8 -0.8 0.4 -0.6 0.5 0.3 0.3 1.0 -0.7 -0.7 0.9 1.8 2.7 0.0 1.4 0.2 0.0 0.4 0.3 -0.5 -0.2 -0.1 2.0 0.2 0.0 1.7 0.6 -0.6 0.0 -1.0 -1.2 1.3 -0.7 -0.5 1.4 -1.6 1.7 -1.0 -0.4 -1.5 -2.0 0.9 0.7 Female employment rate (%) 2013 Variation 2013/2012 (in p.p) Female employment rate (in p.p) variation 2013/2012 Employment rate (%) 2013Region (CITY) 78.4 77.5 76.4 75.8 75.4 74.4 74.0 73.7 73.7 73.4 72.7 71.9 69.3 69.1 69.0 68.5 68.2 67.8 66.6 66.5 65.9 65.6 65.0 65.0 64.9 64.0 63.7 62.8 62.7 62.0 61.8 61.4 61.3 60.5 59.0 58.5 57.0 56.7 54.4 52.7 52.5 49.7 49.4 47.8 Note: Labour force aged 15 to 64 years. The original database contains 314 regions, although the table shows only a sample of reference regions. Source: Eurostat 70 The unemployment rate in Catalonia is still far off the European average The modest recovery in the European Union economy in the second half of 2013 meant the year, which started in recession, ended with an unemploy- ment rate of 10.7% for the whole EU-28, 0.1% below that of 2012. The unem- ployment situation continues to affect in southern Europe especially hard, such as in Spain and Catalonia, where the difference with respect to the Eu- ropean average continues to grow after increases in unemployment of 1.4% and 0.8% respectively. The unemployment rate in Catalonia reached an annual rate of 23.4% in 2013, doubling the European average and moving further above the main bench- mark regions, although still below the Spanish average (26.4%). Meanwhile, the female unemployment rate stood at 22.8%, 0.7 points above that of 2012. Importantly, the female unemployment rate in Catalonia is slightly lower than the overall rate, while in the European Union it is very similar. In Barcelona, during the fourth quarter of 2013 the unemployment rate stood at 17.2% and female rate stood at 17.5%, after falls of 1.6 and 1.4 points respectively, compared to same period last year. These unemploy- ment rate trends place the city closer to the European Union trend, alt- hough it is more than 6% above this rate, than Spain’s rate, which stands 8.6% above Barcelona’s. Unemployment rate in European regions in 2013 Unemployment rate (%) 2013Region (CITY) Source: Eurostat Unemployment rate (%) 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 UESpainCatalonia 29,0 24,0 19,0 14,0 9,0 0 Upper Bavaria (Munich) Prague (Prague) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) Oslo (OSLO) Darmstadt (Frankfurt) Hamburg (Hamburg) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) North Holland (Amsterdam) Southern Finland (Helsinki) Stockholm (Stockholm) Eastern Scotland (Edinburg) South Holland (Rotterdam) Denmark (Copenhagen) Mazowsze (Warsaw) Lombardy (Milan) Southwest Scotland (Glasgow) Vienna (Vienna) Rhône-Alpes (LYON) Inner London (London) Estonia (Tallinn) Central Hungary (BUDAPEST) Ile de France (Paris) Turkey (ANKARA) Greater Manchester (Manchester) Sofia (Sofia) South - Muntenia (Bucharest) Berlin (Berlin) Istanbul (Istanbul) Provence-Alps-Côte d’Azur (Marseille) EUROPEAN UNION Lithuania (VILNIUS) Latvia (Riga) Lazio (Rome) South and East (Dublin) West Midlands (Birmingham) Languedoc-Roussillon (Montpellier) Basque Country (Bilbao) Lisbon (Lisbon) Brussels (Brussels) Madrid (Madrid) Catalonia (BARCELONA) Spain Attica (Athens) Valencia (VALENCIA) 2.6 3.1 3.7 3.9 4.3 4.8 6.4 6.6 6.7 6.9 7.1 7.4 7.4 8.0 8.1 8.3 8.4 8.4 8.6 8.6 8.7 8.9 9.0 9.5 9.8 9.9 10.6 10.6 10.8 10.8 11.8 11.9 12.3 12.6 12.9 12.9 15.8 18.5 19.2 20.2 23.4 26.4 28.2 28.6 2.6 3.1 3.7 3.9 3.7 4.0 5.4 6.1 6.2 6.9 6.7 7.2 7.9 8.2 8.8 7.6 8.2 8.4 8.6 8.2 8.0 8.1 14.6 8.0 8.6 9.5 9.2 13.9 10,9 10.9 10.5 11.1 13.7 10.2 12.8 13.1 16.0 17.8 17.0 20.8 22.8 27.0 30.3 29.8 Note: Population aged 15 or over. The original database contains 314 regions, although the table shows only a reference regions. Source: Eurostat Female unemployment rate (%) 2013 Barcelona Report 2014. Labour market and training 71 More than 4 in 10 Catalan workers have university level studies According to Eurostat data for 2013, 41.8% of workers in Catalonia have uni- versity level studies, representing an increase of 2.2% compared to the pre- vious year. This indicator is significantly higher than the EU average (33.5%) and above benchmark regions like Manchester, Munich, Lyon and Milan, and also slightly above the Spanish average (41.6%) for the first time since 2009. Standing at 46.4%, the percentage of female workers with a university edu- cation in Catalonia is again higher than the total population, having risen 2% compared to 2012. Moreover, this rate remains well above the European Uni- on average (37%) and above the aforementioned benchmark regions, and for the first time in seven years, it’s also above the Spanish average (45.7%). These results show the increase in higher education in Catalonia in recent years, and now further work is needed to bring these levels of education to those seen in the northern regions of Europe. Workers with university studies in European regions in 2013 Source: Eurostat Workers with university studies (% of all employed people) Lombardy (Milan) Upper Bavaria (Munich) South east Ireland (Dublin) Catalonia (Barcelona) Northern Holland (Amsterdam) 49 .3 47 .2 38 .1 37 .9 18 .9 42 .7 42 .6 60 50 40 30 20 10 60 38 .8 39 .6 19 .5 2011 2013 Total workers with university studies (%) Female workers with university studies (%) Region (CITY) 2012 43 .1 50 .0 39 .1 41 .8 20 .3 Inner London (London) Basque Country (Bilbao) Oslo og Akershus (OSLO) Region of Brussels-Capital (BRUSSELS) Southern Finland (Helsinki) Madrid (Community) (MADRID) Eastern Scotland (EDINBURG) South and East (Dublin) Stockholm (Stockholm) Capital (Copenhagen) Ile de France (Paris) South West Scotland (Glasgow) Attica (Athens) North Holland (Amsterdam) Lithuania (VILNIUS) Berlin (Berlin) Catalonia (BARCELONA) Mazowsze (Warsaw) Spain Bucharest - Ilfov (Bucharest) Greater Manchester (Manchester) Prague (Prague) Southwest (BG) (SOFIA) Southern Netherlands (The Hague) Upper Bavaria (Munich) Rhône-Alpes (LYON) Provence-Alps-Côte d’Azur (Marseille) Valencia (VALENCIA) Central Hungary (BUDAPEST) Latvia (Riga) Darmstadt (Frankfurt am Main) Languedoc-Roussillon (MONTPELIER) West Midlands (Birmingham) Vienna (AT) (Vienna) Stuttgart (Stuttgart) EUROPEAN UNION Lisbon (Lisbon) Düsseldorf (Düsseldorf) Istanbul (Istanbul) Central Croatia (ZAGREB) Lazio (Rome) Lombardy (Milan) Ankara (ANKARA) 72.0% 59.8% 60.6% 58.7% 59.5% 53.4% 56.5% 55.9% 54.1% 53.1% 48.6% 50.7% 47.9% 44.3% 50.4% 44.5% 46.4% 49.4% 45.7% 46.1% 45.1% 40.2% 47.9% 40.3% 35.8% 42.6% 43.4% 41.5% 40.5% 45.1% 33.5% 41.6% 40.7% 35.7% 29.7% 37.0% 37.4% 26.3% 41.5% 30.3% 29.9% 24.3% 13.8% 69.7% 55.7% 55.0% 53.3% 53.2% 52.3% 51.4% 50.0% 48.4% 48.4% 47.3% 46.4% 44.6% 43.1% 42.4% 42.4% 41.8% 41.6% 41.6% 41.2% 41.1% 40.7% 39.7% 39.5% 39.1% 39.1% 39.0% 37.8% 37.6% 36.4% 36.3% 35.9% 35.6% 35.4% 35.2% 33.5% 31.8% 28.6% 27.3% 25.8% 24.6% 20.3% 14.4% Note: % of employed population aged 25 to 64 years with a university degree, the original database contains 314 regions, although the table contains a reference sample of selected regions. Source: Eurostat 72 Best Business Schools in Europe in 2014 Source: Financial Times. Global MBA Ranking Position in the European ranking 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 IESE Business School ESADE Business School 7 7 Barcelona is still the only city with two business schools in the European top ten Barcelona is the only city with two business schools in Europe’s top ten in 2014, according to the Financial Times’ Top 100 MBA full-time programmes ranking, which has been published for the last 14 years. IESE and ESADE bu- siness schools were placed in 3rd and 8th position respectively in the European ranking for the second year, above schools like Oxford University’s Said Busi- ness School and Warwick Business School, both English schools. In the 2014 world ranking, IESE and ESADE also retained their previous year’s positions, coming 7th and 22nd respectively. The Which MBA? ranking published annually by The Economist Intelligence Unit placed IESE 5th in the world ranking and ESADE 16th in 2013. Both scho- ols climbed positions compared to 2012, when they stood in 9th and 18th positi- on, respectively. Year after year, these indicators show Barcelona’s excellence in business school education at the international level. 5 44 6 4 4 33 4 3 9 12 8 1010 8 88 Barcelona Report 2014. Labour market and training 73 World ranking 2014European ranking 2014 Business school City Source: Financial Times. Global MBA London Business School Insead IESE Business School IMD IE Business School University of Cambridge: Judge HEC Paris ESADE Business School University of Oxford: Saïd Warwick Business School SDA Bocconi Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University City University: Cass Manchester Business School Cranfield School of Management Imperial College Business School The Lisbon MBA Hult International Business School Mannheim Business School University of Strathclyde Business School Tilburg University, TiasNimbas Lancaster University Management School University of Bath School of Management Universität St Gallen ESMT - European School of Manegement and Technology University College Dublín: Smurfit EM Lyon Business School Durham University Business School Vlerick Leuven Management School London Fontainebleau Barcelona Lausanne Madrid Cambridge Paris Barcelona Oxford Coventry Milan Rotterdam London Manchester Cranfield London Lisbon UK / USA / UAE / China Mannheim Glasgow Tilburg Lancaster Bath St.Gallen Berlin Dublin Lyon Durham 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 21 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 3 5 7 12 13 16 21 22 23 25 31 39 41 43 46 49 52 61 66 73 74 77 84 88 89 91 95 97 100 Sy nt he si s 76 Given a backdrop of general improvements at the international and Euro- pean level in 2013, Catalonia’s economy came out of its second recession in the current economic crisis and started to see a recovery in activity in the second quarter. This was accompanied by net job creation at the beginning of 2014, something not seen since 2007 and extraordinarily im- portant for reducing the high unemployment rate. In this context of overall improvement, Barcelona managed to maintain a strong position in terms of its economic and business activity at the international and European level judging by the majority of indicators co- llected for the Barcelona Observatory 2014 report, even improving positi- ons on some of them. Barcelona is among the top 10 European and world cities according to many key business development indicators like the future prospects indi- cator or attractiveness for international retailers, the number of foreign investment projects received and the organization of international mee- tings. Barcelona improved its position on the majority of these compared to the previous year. Specifically, Barcelona came seventh in the ranking of European cities with the best future prospects for 2014-2015, accor- ding to the Financial Times group’s fDi Magazine. This is an increase of fifteen places compared to the previous year’s ranking, especially rele- vant given the city’s top overall position and best foreign investment pro- motion award by fDi Magazine for cities of the South of Europe. A KPMG report places Barcelona in tenth spot overall in terms of foreign investment projects received for the period 2009-2013, while the Mori Global Power City Index, which compares 40 of the world’s largest citi- es, places Barcelona 19th worlwide and 10th in Europe in terms of global competitiveness. Barcelona is the world’s top city in terms of number of delegates and the third in terms of number of international conferences organized in the period 2008-2012, according to International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), while export prospects for 2014 conti- nue to look favourable for Catalonia, which is located in the upper part of the European ranking, above the EU average and ahead of countries like Belgium or Germany. In the fields of knowledge and technology, Barcelona is still well posi- tioned at the European and world level and it improved on indicators like workers employed in knowledge-intensive and high-tech services in 2012, and in terms of workers in science and technology in 2012, and scientific production in 2013 and requests for international technology patents in 2011. What particularly stands out is its position in terms of scientific producti- on: it is the fifth city in Europe and eleventh in the world, according to the Knowledge Cities Ranking 2013, compiled by the UPC’s Centre for Land Policy and Values. Barcelona occupied 27th position in terms of scientific production in the world in 2005 and since then its rise has been almost continuous. As for jobs, employment in the area of science and techno- logy increased strongly in Catalonia in 2012, significantly softening the cumulative decline seen since 2008, while high and mid range technolo- gical intensity manufacturing fell and Catalonia stood in 11th place in the ranking of Europe’s regions. However, in the field of innovation, 2011’s results showed a significant increase in technology patents (+35.8%), and a slight stabilization in the number of total PCT patents applied for in the Barcelona area. Tourism remains one of the drivers of Barcelona’s economic momentum especially in these times of recession when domestic demand is weak. Tourism has experienced an upward trend and this has helped Barcelo- na’s positioning in Europe, especially since the city was placed in the top 10 in terms of number of passengers using the city airport in 2013, sixth in terms of international tourists in 2012, despite losing a position on the previous year, and first in terms of cruise passengers in 2012, a ranking it has held for twelve consecutive years. Regarding passenger traffic at the city airport, Barcelona is one of the few airports that has seen incre- ases rather than declines, unlike many other airports including Madrid, Athens, Milan-Malpensa and Rome-Fiumicino. Importantly, Barcelona Airport was recently awarded Best Airport in Europe in 2014 in the large airports category with more than 25 million passengers by the Airports Council International (ICA). Barcelona Observatory’s chapter on sustainability and quality of life has been changed almost entirely this year with four new indicators: smart cities, global brand, work appeal and mobility. Importantly, Barcelona is in the top 10 for the first three indicators and in terms of mobility it’s in the top 20 in the world. It came 4th in the top smart city in Europe ranking, climbing four positions over the year to beat Stockholm, Paris, London and Hamburg, boosting the city’s leadership and international promo- tion of smart city integration of ecology, urbanism and technologies to improve sustainability and quality of life. Barcelona was 5th in terms of both quality of life and as an attractive place for working in the world. It holds the 6th best global brand according to the Guardian Cities Global Brand Barometer, which takes into account two fundamental aspects to deter- mine Brand strength: assets, which includes climate, tourist sights, in- frastructure, the level of security and economic prosperity; and mentions in the media, like opinions posted on social networks and impact on the media. Regarding mobility, the Catalan metropolis stands out because of its incisive public sector strategies and measures, its share of transportation modes with zero-emission mobility, the success of the city’s bike sharing scheme and its road density policies, among others. However, it does need to improve pollution reduction, the high price of public transport and its car- pooling. Barcelona Report 2014. Synthesis 77 In terms of costs of living, Barcelona remains competitive relative to other cities in the world and, although it jumped a position in the 2013 ranking it is below cities like Madrid, Frankfurt and Munich and its position in the ranking before the recession. In terms of salary, the City of Barcelona was located in the mid range of the gross salary ranking in Europe and the world in 2012, above cities like Rome, Seoul, Dubai, Lisbon or Tel Aviv. Barcelona continued to be competitive in terms of the price of industrial land, office rental prices and retail premises in 2013. Leases on retail pre- mises remained constant or increased in the city’s main shopping streets, reflecting the robustness of demand and the growing appeal of the luxury segment in Barcelona. At the same time, reduced office rental rates and the stability of Industrial land prices in Barcelona means the city is loca- ted in the low and mid range of the ranking respectively compared to other benchmark cities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. This all means Barcelona’s attractiveness for doing business is on the up as the economic recovery gains momentum. On the other hand, despite VAT rates and cor- poration tax remaining stable in 2013, Spain is located in the highest part of the ranking compared to other countries’ tax rates in the European Union. In terms of the labour market, in 2013 the employment rate in Catalonia was again below the European average and the unemployment rate more than doubled the EU average, despite an improvement that began to be no- ticed in the last months of the year. However, the adjustment process in the labour market due to the recession has been less intense in Barcelona than in the surrounding regions. The city ended the year with an employment rate similar to the European rate and an unemployment rate that was clo- ser to the Spanish rate. In terms of higher education, Catalonia and Barcelona have made signifi- cant progress in recent years. In 2013, 41.8% of workers in Catalonia had tertiary studies, a figure well above the European Union average, above bench- mark regions like Manchester, Munich, Milan or Lyon and also slightly abo- ve the Spanish average for the first time since 2009. And Barcelona is the only city with two top ten business schools in The Fi- nancial Times’ Top 100 MBA full-time programmes, which it has published for the last 14 years. IESE and ESADE Business School were placed 3rd and 8th in the European ranking, respectively, for the second consecutive year. In the world rankings the schools ranked 7th and 22nd respectively. Finally, and for the fourth consecutive year, Barcelona Observatory has pu- blished its special report Business climate in the metropolitan area of Bar- celona (AMB), which examines the main business trends in 2013 and ma- kes forecasts for 2014. This analysis shows 2013 was the year that marked the beginning of an economic recovery and, therefore, saw improvements Finally, and for the fourth consecutive year, Barcelona Observatory has published its special report Business climate in the metropolitan area of Barcelona (AMB), which examines the main business trends in 2013 and makes forecasts for 2014. This analysis shows 2013 was the year that marked the beginning of an economic recovery and, therefore, saw impro- vements to business performance in the AMB, despite still being negati- ve. At the same time, the falling prices of goods and services, declines in employment and drops in investment levels were not as sharp as before. The sector that saw most improvements in business performance was the hospitality and tourism sector, thanks to buoyant foreign tourism inflows, followed by industry, which enjoyed successful results due to exports. In 2014, business executives in the AMB are forecasting a consolidation of business performance in the first quarter and they believe in the second quarter this will have gained even more momentum, especially in the in- dustrial sector, hospitality and other services (not retail). 78 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Globally competitiveness of cities 2013 European cities of the future 2014/2015 Entrepreneurial activity rate 2013 Business export forecasts1,3 2014 Foreign investment projects 2013 Attractiveness for international retailers 2012 Organisation of international meetings 2013 Scientific production 2013 Workers in science and technology2 2012 Workers in knowledge-intensive high-technology services 2012 Beijing London Tokyo Seoul Shanghai Boston Paris New York Madrid Moscow Barcelona Toronto Cambridge, Ma Baltimore Sao Paulo Paris Madrid Milan Outer London Munich Rome Warsaw Barcelona Istanbul Inner London Oxford Stockholm Berlin Brighton Lyon London Paris Moscow Milan Madrid Rome Munich St. Petersburg Prague Barcelona Istanbul Berlin Hamburg Vienna Amsterdam Brazil Argentina China Latvia United States Hungary Slovakia Poland Netherlands Sweden Switzerland EU average United Kingdom Barcelona Catalonia Paris Madrid Vienna Barcelona Berlin Singapore London Istanbul Lisbon Seoul Prague Amsterdam Dublin Buenos Aires Brussels London Helsinki Eindhoven Cambridge Dublin Munich Barcelona Berlin Amsterdam Reading Edinburgh Vienna Glasgow Rotterdam Lyon Portugal Finland Serbia Lithuania Latvia Estonia Spain Turkey Bulgaria Poland Malta Greece Barcelona Italy Slovenia London Shanghai Hong Kong New York Sao Paulo Sydney Paris Moscow Beijing Barcelona San Francisco Düsseldorf Dublin Tokyo Amsterdam Paris Madrid London Warsaw Barcelona Lyon Milan Munich Berlin Stuttgart Düsseldorf Seville Frankfurt Cologne Marseille London New York Paris Tokyo Singapore Seoul Amsterdam Berlin Vienna Frankfurt Hong Kong Shanghai Sydney ----- 19 Barcelona 1 The ranking refers to a selected sample 2 The ranking refers to regions or provinces 3 The ranking refers to countries Barcelona Report 2014. Synthesis 79 Paris London Toronto Calgary Barcelona Vancouver Madrid Montreal Stockholm Sydney Oslo Halifax Hong Kong Berlin Seattle Tokyo San Jose Seoul New York Boston Osaka Los Angeles Houston Chicago Seattle Stuttgart Munich Stockholm ... 19 Barcelona London Heathrow (LHR) Miami Port Canaveral Port Everglades Barcelona Venice Southampton Galveston New York New Orleans Tampa Seattle Long Beach Singapore Santos Copenhagen Copenhagen Amsterdam Vienna Barcelona Paris Stockholm London Hamburg Berlin Helsinki PCT patent applications1,2 2011 Passenger airports 2013 International tourists 2012 Cruise passengers 2012 Smart cities in Europe 2013 Global brand 2014 Quality of life 2012 Mobility 2013 Labour attractiveness 2014 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Cost of living 2013 Paris Roissy (CDG) Frankfurt (FRA) Amsterdam (AMS) Madrid (MAD) Istanbul (IST) Munich (MUC) Rome-Fiumicino (FCO) London Gatwick (LGW) Moscow Domo- dedovo (DME) Paris Orly (ORY) Moscow (SVO) Antalya (AYT) Zurich (ZHR) Barcelona (BCN) Hong Kong Singapore Bangkok London Macau Kuala Lumpur Shenzhen New York Antalya Paris Istanbul Rome Dubai ... 23 Barcelona Los Angeles New York London Paris Seoul Barcelona Rio de Janeiro San Francisco Las Vegas Dubai Istanbul Madrid Chicago Singapore Bangkok Tokyo Stockholm Paris Oslo Barcelona Toronto Helsinki Seoul London Milan Auckland Athens Vienna Melbourne Amsterdam Hong Kong Stockholm Amsterdam Copenhagen Vienna Singapore Paris Zurich London Helsinki Munich Stuttgart Berlin ... 20 Barcelona Luanda Moscow Tokio N’Djamena Singapore Hong Kong Geneva Zurich Bern Sydney Oslo Osaka Seoul … 84 Barcelona 1 The ranking refers to a selected sample 2 The ranking refers to regions or provinces 3 The ranking refers to countries 4 Ranking from less to more value 80 Office rental prices 2013 Corporate tax1,3 2013 Rental prices for industrial land 2013 Salary levels 2012 Employment rate1,2 2013 Workers with tertiary studies1,2 2013 Unemployment rate1,2,4 2013 Business Schools 2014 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Price of retail leases3 2013 United States Japan Argentina Belgium India France Italy Australia Barcelona Tunisia Germany Luxembourg South Africa Norway Canada Zurich Geneva Copenhagen Oslo Luxembourg New York Sydney Tokyo Munich Frankfurt Los Angeles Chicago Stockholm ... 29 Barcelona Munich Prague Stuttgart Oslo Frankfurt Hamburg Düsseldorf Amsterdam Helsinki Stockholm Edinburgh Rotterdam Copenhagen ... 41 Barcelona London Bilbao Oslo Brussels Helsinki Madrid Edinburgh Dublin Stockholm Copenhagen Paris Glasgow Athens ... 17 Barcelona Munich Stockholm Oslo Stuttgart Amsterdam Copenhaguen Frankfort Hamburg Prague Helsinki Rotterdam Edinburgh London … 35 Barcelona Abu Dhabi Geneva London Oslo Helsinki Zurich Moscow Stockholm St. Petersburg Paris Dubai Glasgow Edinburgh ... 20 Barcelona Hong Kong- Causeway Bay New York 5th Avenue Tokyo- Ginza Sydney-Pitt Street Mall London-New Bond Street Zurich- Bahnhofstrasse Milan-Via Montenapoleone Seoul- Myeongdong Munich- Kaufingerstrasse Vienna- Kohlmarkt São Paulo- Iguatemi Shopping Moscow- Stoleshnikov Beijing- Wangfujing Barcelona- Portal de l’Angel London - London Business School Fontainebleau - Insead Barcelona - Iese Business School Lausanne - IMD Madrid - IE Business School Cambridge - University of Cambridge: Judge Paris - HEC Paris Barcelona - Esade Business School Oxford - University of Oxford: Saïd Coventry - Warwick Business School Mian - SDA Bocconi London: City University: Cass Manchester - Manchester Business School Cranfield - Cranfield School of Management Rotterdam - Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus Paris-Av. Dec Champs-Élysées London West End Moscow Paris Geneva London city Zurich Dubai St. Petersburg Oslo Stockholm Milan Frankfurt Istanbul ... 45 Barcelona 1 The ranking refers to a selected sample 2 The ranking refers to regions or provinces 3 The ranking refers to countries 4 Ranking from less to more value Barcelona Report 2014. Synthesis 81 Sp ec ia l R ep or t 84 BUSINESS CLIMATE IN BARCELONA’S METROPOLITAN AREA Situation in 2013 and prospects for 2014 Index 1. Business climate: Situation and trends in 2013 2. Factors limiting business performance in 2013 3. Situation and business prospects for the first half of 2014 4. Graphs and tables 5. Appendix for methodology Executive Summary • 2013 was the year of economic recovery and, therefore, improvements to business performance in the metropolitan area of Barcelona (AMB), although this is still negative. • The sector that most improved was the hospitality sector, thanks to buoyant foreign tourism, followed by the industrial sector, which has also had fine export results. • 2013 also saw moderation in falls in prices, employment, and investment in the AMB. • Notably, the hospitality sector registered a slight increase in overall investment. • The industrial sector saw a moderately positive balance in terms of employment in the last quarter of the year • The construction sector continues to record more negative results than any other sector analyzed, and worse than the whole of Catalonia. • Weak demand became less important in terms of being a limiting factor for business performance thanks to the economic recovery, although it is still the factor that is most mentioned by companies. • Increased competition, the second factor mentioned as limiting business performance, remained almost the same in terms of importance. In the hospitality industry it even gained in importance as a limiting factor and even overtook the factor weak demand. • The third factor, financing difficulties, also lost some of its importance although it remains high when we look at the past trends. • Improved business performance consolidated in the first quarter of 2014, and it is expected to gain momentum in the second quarter, especially in the industrial sector, hospitality and other services sector (excluding retail sectors) Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 85 1. Business climate: Situation and trends in 2013 For Europe, Spain, Catalonia and the metropolitan area of Barcelona, 2013 was a year of improvement as from the second quarter of the year, according to the Survey on Business Climate by Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat. Business performance in the AMB is still negative, but less so than last year, and this improvement is widespread across all sectors included in the survey. The most notable improvement was for the hospitality sector, followed by the industrial sector. In fact, industrial exports continued to show positive results in 2013 and they were even better than in 2012. In comparison to the whole of Catalonia, business performance in the AMB was somewhat less negative in 2013. Business performance in the metropolitan area of Barcelona was better than in 2012. In fact, this improvement was occurring gradually throughout the year, from the second quarter as seen by economic activity trends which are no longer negative. Therefore, in the fourth quarter of 2013 business performance was the least negative in the current data series used since 2009. Price falls also bottomed out in 2013 compared to 2012. On the one hand, the percentage of negative responses (price falls) went from 21% in 2012 to 17% in 2013, and on the other hand, the percentage of positive respon- ses (higher prices), fell, but to a lesser extent, from 7% in 2012 to 6% in 2013. This trend was correlated to activity. Quarterly data from the survey show moderation in price decreases started as from the second quarter, when economic activity also recovered. Moderation in price falls is quite widespread across sectors, except in the construction sector which unlike the rest saw a slight acceleration of pri- ce falls in 2013. Table 1.1. Business climate across the whole economy2. Comparison with Catalonia. 2 Results for the overall economy are aggregated from the results for the industrial sector, construction, retail and commerce, hospitality, and other services categories. As from 2013 results of the survey for Spain no longer be included as they are not available. INE only publishes results of the Harmonized Busi- ness Climate indicator for Spain and sectors. Survey results for the AMB show the percentage of executives that say business performance has been favourable has risen from 9% in 2012 to 15% in 2013, while the percentage that consider business poor has gone from 53% to 41% in the same period. This improvement is seen across all sectors, but especially the hospitality sector where the percentage of businesses describing business performance as good equals the per- centage that say it is negative. Business performance across the whole of Catalonia has also improved: 2013 is less negative than previous year, though it is still slightly more negative than in the AMB. The percentage of business executives that say business performance has been positive is 13%, compared to 15% in the AMB, while the percentage that say business is poor is 41%, identical to that recorded in the AMB. Figure 1.1. Trends in business performance across the whole economy. Situation from 2012 to 2013. Comparison with Catalonia. Balance1 in percentages 1The balance is the difference between the percentage of businesses indicating that business performance was favourable and the percentage indicating it was unfavourable. Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat 2012 2013 AMB Catalonia 0 -5 -10 -15 -20 -25 -30 -35 -40 -45 -50 Whole economy AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Sales Prices Number of employees Investment Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Positive and better than the previous year Negative and better than the previous year Positive and worse than the previous year Negative and worse than the previous year Positive and no change on the previous year Negative and no change on the previous yea- 86 Results by sector: Business performance improved last year in the AMB in all sectors analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate, to a greater or lesser extent. The sector that improved most was the hospitality sector thanks to the buoyancy of foreign tourism, followed by the industrial sector, which also benefited from strong exports. The industrial sector ended 2013 in a far less negative situation than the year before. This improvement is even more remarkable if we analyze the trend quarter by quarter. In fact, in the last quarter of 2013 the percen- tage of positive responses (favourable business performance) was 26%, which almost equalled the percentage of negative responses (unfavoura- ble business performance), which was 29%. For the whole of 2013, these percentages were 20% and 32%, respectively, which yields a less nega- tive balance than 2012, when these percentages were 51% of negative answers to 12% of positive responses. This improvement in business performance in the industrial sector3 in the AMB has benefited from strong export growth. This survey shows a positive balance for this variable, which was also somewhat more positi- ve than in 2012. By 2013 the percentage of executives who said they had increased sales abroad was 19%, slightly higher than in 2012 (18%) and higher than the percentage of employers who said there had been a fall, which was 11% in 2013, lower than the 13% recorded in 2012. Impor- tantly, the nominal growth in goods exports was weak (0.5% annually in 2013), much lower than the previous year (7.1%), although it was higher than Catalonia’s average (0.1% in 2013), according to the State Depart- ment of Trade. The results of the survey on business climate show that the balance in terms of industrial sector exports in 2013 was slightly hig- her than the whole of Catalonia. Regarding prices, these fell more moderately in 2013, especially in the last quarter of the year, when the economic recovery began to show signs of consolidation. This was accompanied by a certain recovery in domestic demand, especially in terms of family consumption, but also in terms of investment4. In 2013 the percentage of executives that said prices had increased fell slightly to 6% (7% in 2012), while the percentage of executives that had noted a decline in prices was 17% (21% in 2012). 3As from 2013, the Survey has extended the number of industries analyzed to cover the whole of industry, not just manufacturing, as had happened until now. 4Data for Catalonia showed that in the last quarter of 2013, inter-annual household consumption was positive for the first time in the last three and a half years, while investment falls in capital equipment almost halted in inter-annual terms. Employment in the metropolitan area showed less pronounced annual falls in 2013 with a higher percentage of answers (increase in employ- ment) from 6% in 2012 to 11% in 2013. The percentage of negative res- ponses was stable (decrease in employment) standing at 27%. Indeed, data showing Social Security membership (Company paid stamps and self employed) confirm this trend. On December 31st, 2013 the number of stamp paying members in the AMB was 1,891,746 people, a 0.1% annual decline, and a much softer fall than the -7% seen in December 31st, 2012. In this case, and in the case of prices, this moderation in employment falls in the AMB occurs when production began to take off as from the second quarter of 2013. Social Security membership for the main sectors shows how falls in em- ployment have become more gradual both in the industrial sector and in the construction sector and there was even growth in affiliate members- hip in the services sector of 0.8% at December 31st 2013 compared to the year previous. Within the services sector, the following areas contributed to employment growth: administration activities, public administration, social services without accommodation, education, information techno- logy services, food and beverage, and accommodation services. Indeed, these last two make up the area called hospitality in the business climate survey, which as we will see further ahead, is the sector that performed best in terms of employment. However, the number of affiliate members in the chemical sector also showed positive results, so too the pharma- ceutical products area and manufacturing, which all saw a rise in em- ployment last December 31st compared to the previous year. The results of the Survey on Business Climate in the industrial sector in the AMB also showed improvements in employment trends in this sector, especia- lly in the last quarter of 2013, which was slightly up on the year previous, as we shall see later. Investment trends also improved in 2013, which was slightly less nega- tive than in 2012. This result is due to positive responses received in the survey (increases in investment) from 7% in 2012 to 18% in 2013, an in- crease of 11 percentage points, exceeding negative answers (decreases in investment), which increased from 27% in 2012 to 31% in 2013 (4 per- centage points). All sectors surveyed show similar improvements, except the construction sector, whose balance was even more negative in 2013. The sector that stands out most is the hospitality sector, which registe- red a moderately positive balance, as discussed below. Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 87 The construction sector continues to record the worst balances, and im- provements to business performance were only seen in the last quarter of 2013, so over the whole year improvements were reduced. For other variables analyzed there was little improvement, as explained afterwards Regarding business performance, the percentage of executives that said this was favourable rose slightly to 4% (2% in 2012), whilst those saying it was unfavourable fell to 67% in 2013 (71% in 2012), but this figure is still very high, especially compared to other sectors analyzed in the survey whose figures were around 30%. In the last quarter of 2013, however, these percentages improved: positive responses rose to 5% and the ne- gative responses dropped to 50%. Falls in sales prices were more gradual in 2013, but for the construction sector, this variable was the most negative of all sectors analyzed. Thus, the percentage of businesses in the sector pointing to a decline in prices dropped from 46% in 2012 to 42% in 2013, while the percentage of busi- ness that say there was a rise in prices increased from 1% in 2012 to 3% in 2013. However, in the case of employment there were no clear improvements. During 2013 the overall balance remained just as negative as the pro- ceeding year, and in terms of quarters there was no clear improvement trend either. In 2013 the percentage of businesses indicating that em- ployment had decreased was 51% (50% in 2012) and those saying it was increasing was 3% (2% the previous year). Also, investment trends didn’t improve, but rather worsened, registering a higher negative balance in 2013 than the previous year. 63% of business people suggest that this fell, compared to 44% recorded in 2012. Only 3% claimed it had increased, more or less the same as in 2012 (2%). In general, the results of the Survey on Business Climate for the cons- truction sector showed more negative results in the metropolitan area of Barcelona than Catalonia during 2013. Probably this is due to the fact new builds have fallen more in the AMB than in the rest of Catalonia sin- ce space is scarce here. However, the most notable improvement in the industrial sector was in terms of employment, apart from exports, which has really acted as a driver of industrial activity over the last four years of the recession. In 2013 there was a slower fall in employment in the industrial sector in the AMB, but especially noteworthy was a slightly positive balance in terms of employment in the fourth quarter. The percentage of executives that said there had been an increase in workers was slightly higher than the percentage that said this had decreased (10% and 9%, respectively). Over the whole year, the percentage of employers that noted an increase in prices was 10% (7% in 2012) and the percentage that registered a fall was 16% (22% in 2012). Inverstment5 also showed significant improvements with a less negative balance in 2013 than the previous year, although this was close to zero. The percentage of companies indicating investment growth (22%) was close to the percentage who said investment had decreased (26%). This showed the fall off in investment in the industrial sector in the AMB had almost come to a halt in 2013. This trend is consistent with what happe- ned to capital goods investments for the whole of Catalonia. The survey results for the industrial sector were slightly less negative than the whole of Catalonia in terms of business performance and in- vestment, and positive in the case of exports, as mentioned above. In the case of employment in the last quarter of 2013, results were better in the AMB, where the balance was slightly positive, which is different to the rest of Catalonia. 5As from 2013 onwards the question on the Business Climate Survey about investment has only been carried out once a year. Therefore, the question is framed regarding inter-annual investment and not quarterey investment as was done before. Table 1.2.Business climate in the industrial sector. Comparison with Catalonia Fuente: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Industrial sector AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Exports Sales prices Number of employees Investment Table 1.3. Business climate in the construction sector. Comparison with Catalonia Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Construction AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Sales prices Number of employees Investment Positive and better than the previous year Negative and better than the previous year Positive and worse than the previous year Negative and worse than the previous year Positive and no change on the previous year Negative and no change on the previous year 88 Retail and commerce in the AMB region in 2013 continued to have the worst results in terms of business performance after those of the cons- truction sector. However, it is also true that the balance showed an im- provement on 2012, being less negative. In 2013, 52% of business people in this sector indicated that business performance had been unfavoura- ble, compared to 10% indicating that it had been favourable. These fi- gures for the previous year were 66% and 6%, respectively. Despite the improved rates, the overall positive result may seem small. However, improvements in business performance gradually increased as the year progressed, and the last quarter of 2013 was quite significant. During the fourth quarter, the percentage of businesses that described performance as unfavourable fell to 33%, and those qualifying it as favourable rose to 17%. In the same quarter in 2012, these percentages were 64% and 8%, respectively. Therefore, the resulting balance is less negative for all quarters in 2012 and 2013. The fall in prices accelerated in 2013 compared to 2012, with the per- centage of businesses registering a decline rising to 26% (21% in 2012), while the percentage seeing falls in price increased to 7% (13% in 2012). Regarding reductions in employment, this remained fairly stable in 2013 for the second consecutive year, so the overall balance was almost identi- cal to 2012 and 2011, although the percentage of responses varied slightly. On the one hand, the percentage of negative responses (indicating a fall in employment) increased to 29% by a similar proportion (previous year 24%). On the other hand, the percentage of positive responses (increased employment) went up to 11% (4% in 2012). Investment also showed significant improvements in 2013, practically stopping any falls. Indeed, the percentage of businesses in the AMB’s re- tail sector indicating an increase in investment has risen significantly, from 7% in 2012 to 20% in 2013. At the same time, the percentage of bu- sinesses indicating a decrease in investment has stabilized at 27% (26% in 2012). The results of the Survey on Business Climate in the AMB in 2013 show annual balances somewhat more negative than the rest of Catalonia, ex- cept for investment. However, business performance improvements in the last quarter of the year were slightly less negative in the metropoli- tan area than in Catalonia. Probably, this is because when demand eases off the AMB suffers most, because it has most of the retail in Catalonia. However, when conditions improve, the AMB area really feels its impact. The hotels and restaurants sector is by far the sector that registered the best business performance in 2013. It not only performed better than other sectors analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate, but also it also recorded positive results for business performance from the second to the last quarter of 2013. Certainly part of these results come from strong seasonal quarters for this sector, but results were as good as or better than the same quarters in 2012. The biggest difference is seen in the last quarter of the year: 2013 showed a positive balance, with 33% of businesses describing business performance as favourable, while 23% described it as negative. In 2012 these percentages were 7% and 48%, respectively, which was worse. During the whole of 2013, improvements to business performance results in the hospitality industry was reduced by the highly negative balance recorded in the first quarter of year. In the whole of 2013 sales prices continued to fall, as they did in 2012, although at a more gradual pace. Worth mentioning, however, is that in the second and third quarters prices rose, which shows that the Easter and Summer seasons were good, while in the third quarter of 2012 the balance was very negative due to prices in the sector in the AMB. The number of workers also followed a positive trend overall in 2013, hal- ting the previous year’s declines. The trend was favourable in the second and third quarters, which showed positive balances, meaning jobs were created. Table 1.4. Business climate in the retail and commerce sector. Comparison with Catalonia Retail and commerce AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Sales prices Number of employees Investment Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Table 1.5. Business climate in the hotels and restaurants sector. Comparison with Catalonia Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Hotels and restaurants AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Sales prices Number of employees Investment Positive and better than the previous year Negative and better than the previous year Positive and worse than the previous year Negative and worse than the previous year Positive and no change on the previous year Negative and no change on the previous year Positive and better than the previous year Negative and better than the previous year Positive and worse than the previous year Negative and worse than the previous year Positive and no change on the previous year Negative and no change on the previous year Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 89 Table 1.6. Business climate for the other services sector. Comparison with Catalonia Other services AMB Catalonia Situation in 2013 Business performance Unfavourable Unfavourable 2013 compared to 2012 Sales prices Number of employees Investment Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat However, investment was the area with the best performance in 2013 as it had a slightly positive balance: the percentage of businesses who indi- cated an increase in investment exceeded that declaring a fall in invest- ment, which was an improvement on the negative results of 2012. These percentages were 27% and 19%, respectively (compared to 7% and 20% in 2012). This trend shows hospitality in the AMB is the only sector that registered a positive balance in terms of investment in 2013. The hotels and restaurants industry in the metropolitan area recorded the best results on all the variables analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate in 2013. The most important results were in terms of business performance and investment and, to a lesser extent, employment. In the case of business performance in the AMB, there were three consecutive quarters that registered positive balances (percentage of employers in- dicating favourable business performance exceeding those declaring an unfavourable performance), while in Catalonia this only happened in the third quarter, the high season. Tourism in Barcelona is less and less se- asonal and there is a significant amount of business tourism that would make the hospitality sector a better prospect than the rest of Catalonia. Investments registered a higher positive balance in the AMB than the rest of Catalonia, while employment was less negative than in the rest of the region. For the rest of services business performance improved in 2013, being less negative than 2012. This is best seen through quarterly trend data. In annual terms, the percentage of businesses which indicated they had unfavourable business performance decreased from 48% in 2012 to 36% in 2013, while the percentage saying business was more favourable rose from 7% to 12%, respectively. However, the figures for the last quarter of 2013 were still the best: the percentage of negative responses (unfavou- rable business performance) was down to 30%, while positive responses (favourable business performance) rose to 16%. The decreases in sales prices fell gradually in 2013 compared to the pre- vious year with the percentage of business saying that prices were falling standing at 23% (29% in 2012), while the percentage saying prices were increasing stayed stable at 3%. As before, this trend towards moderation is more obvious with quarterly data, where these percentages stood at 18% and 1%, respectively, while in the first quarter they were 31% and 8%, respectively. Employment also followed the same trend: falls became more gradual with less negative balances as we move through the quarters in 2013 and, therefore, throughout the whole year. In 2013, 29% of businesses said employment had decreased, almost same percentage as in 2012 (28%), but the percentage of employers saying employment was increa- sing rose to 12% (7% in 2012). Investment also improved and its balance was less negative, with 2013 showing more gradual declines compared to the previous year. On the one hand, the percentage of executives indicating growth was up to 18% (6% in 2012), yet there was also a rise in the number pointing to a fall in investment, but to lesser degree, standing at 30% (26% in 2012). In general, the other services sector recorded slightly less negative re- sults in the AMB than in Catalonia on all variables analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate, except for sales prices, which was negative for both territories. Positive and better than the previous year Negative and better than the previous year Positive and worse than the previous year Negative and worse than the previous year Positive and no change on the previous year Negative and no change on the previous year 90 2. Factors limiting business performance in 2013 The upswing in economic activity led to improvements in demand to a certain extent, although this was still the factor most mentioned by bu- siness as limiting business performance in 2013, but it did lose some importance compared to the previous year. Increased competition, the second-most mentioned limiting factor, hardly improved. Improved conditions regarding financing were of slightly less importan- ce in terms of being a limiting factor to business performance, although these remained significant. This is the third factor mentioned by busi- nesses. Results by sector: In 2013 the most-mentioned factor for the entire metropolitan area of Barcelona was still weak demand. However, increased economic activity and the end of the recession both at a national and European level led to an improvement in demand that, unlike other years, also affected do- mestic demand, which meant this factor became less significant, being mentioned by 81% of employers in 2013, lower than the 90% recorded in 2012, although this is obviously still high. The reduced importance of this factor was generalized to virtually all sectors analyzed in the Survey on Business Climate, with the only ex- ception being the construction sector, which was also the sector with the highest percentage of businesses indicating weak demand as being a limiting factor to business performance in 2013, with 94%, and this was virtually the same as 2012 when it was 95%. The sectors where this percentage was below the average for the AMB was hospitality, other services and the industrial sector, mentioned by 77%, 78% and 79% of business, respectively. The retail sector, along with construction, is the other sector where weak demand was mentioned by a higher than ave- rage percentage of businesses in the AMB as being a limiting factor, was 84% in 2013, down compared to 2012, when it was 96%. Increased competition was the second-most mentioned factor limiting business performance in 2013 in the AMB, mentioned by 50% of execu- tives, a percentage similar to 2012’s results (51%). Competition for de- mand, which thanks to the recession had shrunk, got tougher. However, this result only occurs in two sectors: hospitality and other services, especially the first. In fact, the hospitality industry recorded the highest percentage of businesses mentioning competition as a limiting factor to business performance, which stood at 89%, even exceeding the factor weak demand, which was mentioned by 77% of businesses in the sector. The rest of services also saw increases in the percentage of businesses mentioning this as a limiting factor, but to a lesser extent than in the hospitality industry, standing at 48% in 2012 and 51% in 2013. This is only slightly above the average for the whole of the AMB. However, for the rest of sectors this factor lost importance. It lost most importance for the construction sector, going from being mentioned by 61% of businesses in 2012 to 44% in 2013, while the industrial sector went from 46% to 41%, and retail, 46% to 45%, respectively. The third factor limiting business performance was financing difficulties, which was mentioned by 40% of businesses in the AMB, a lower percen- tage than the previous year (46%). This loss of importance was thanks to the economic recovery and improved conditions in financial markets (like risk premium reductions in peripheral countries, measures announced by the European Central Bank, progress on a banking union in Europe, reductions in interest rates and uncertainties, as well as improving pros- pects). The reduced importance of this factor is seen across all sector to a lesser or greater extent. The hospitality industry stood out for having a smaller percentage of businesses indicating finance difficulties with 19% Figure 2.1. Factors that limit business performance across the whole economy. Comparison 2012-2013 (percentage) Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat 2012 2013 81 90 50 51 40 46 Weak demand Increased competition Financing difficulties Lack of adequate personnel Insufficient production equipment 6 6 5 4 Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 91 in 2013. This is because this sector is performing better than the rest thanks to international demand and because financing needs are lower than other sectors. Afterwards comes the industrial sector, where 37% of businesses mentioned this factor as limiting business, after comes retail, other services and construction, with similar percentages (43 to 44%), which is slightly above the average for the whole of the AMB. In the case of the hospitality business, 13% of executives pointed to a lack of adequately-qualified workers as being a limiting factor in busi- ness performance in 2013. This is a small percentage but, firstly, it is the highest for all sectors. Moreover, this percentage increased compared to the previous year. It may not be a key factor determining business per- formance, but it is beginning to have some relevance since it’s twice as high as other sectors. Comparative results by sector for the AMB and the whole of Catalonia show some differences, namely: • Increased competition is a little more relevant to the whole Catalonia than in AMB in 2013, especially for the industrial sector and retail. • In the industrial sector this factor is mentioned by 54% of Catalan bu- sinesses versus 41% in the metropolitan area. The trends are uneven, while in Catalonia this factor is gaining importance compared to the pre- vious year, in the AMB it is becoming less important. • For retail the percentages are 45% to 51% for the AMB and Catalonia. • The financing difficulties are less important in the construction sector in the AMB than in Catalonia. In 2013, 44% of businesses in the AMB mention this as a factor limiting business compared to 55% in the whole of Catalonia. • The hospitality industry in the AMB saw a higher percentage of bu- sinesses pointing to increased competition as a limiting factor than in Catalonia as a whole, 89% versus 73%, respectively. • Conversely, weak demand and financing difficulties were less relevant to this sector in the metropolitan area than in Catalonia. Weak demand is mentioned by 77% of businesses in the AMB, compared to 81% in Cata- lonia, and financial difficulties are mentioned by 19%, compared to 31%, respectively. Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Table 2.1. Factors that limit business performance across the whole economy. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Table 2.2. Factors that limit business performance in the industrial sector. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Whole economy AMB Catalonia Weak demand 81 82 Increased competition 50 53 Financing difficulties 40 41 Lack of adequate personnel 6 6 Insufficient production equipment 4 5 Industrial sector AMB Catalonia Weak demand 79 80 Increased competition 41 54 Financing difficulties 37 35 Lack of adequate personnel 6 6 Insufficient production equipment 5 8 Table 2.3. Factors that limit business performance in the construction sector. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Construction AMB Catalonia Weak demand 94 92 Increased competition 44 55 Financing difficulties 44 46 Lack of adequate personnel 5 4 Insufficient production equipment 2 2 92 Situation and business prospects in the first half of 2014 Business performance remained stable in the first quarter of 2014 compared to the previous year. Business forecasts for the second quarter were positive again for the first time in the last three years. Expectations are positive in the hospitality, industrial and other services sectors (not including retail), while the construction and retail sectors are negative but holding steady. The results of the Survey on Business Climate for the first half of 2014 show improvements to business performance in the first quarter conso- lidating and these could gain momentum in the second quarter. The situ- ation in the first quarter was better than a year ago. It is stable compared to the last quarter of 2013. Meanwhile, business forecasts for the second quarter were positive for the first time in the last three years, when there was a worsening of the economic situation and a second recession in the middle of 2011. Figure 3.1. Business performance across the whole economy, first semester, 2014 (balance6, in %) Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat 2012.I II III ForecastsSituation IV 2013.I II III IV 2014.I II 10 0 -10 -20 -30 -40 -50 -60 Table 2.4. Factors that limit business performance in the retail and commercial sector. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Table 2.5. Factors that limit business performance in the hospitality sector. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Table 2.6. Factors that limit business performance in the rest of services sector. Comparison with Catalonia (percentage) Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Gains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Loses importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Maintains importance as a limiting factor affecting business performance compared to the previous year Retail and commerce AMB Catalonia Weak demand 84 86 Increased competition 43 42 Financing difficulties 45 51 Lack of adequate personnel 6 6 Insufficient production equipment 2 2 Hospitality AMB Catalonia Weak demand 77 8 1 Increased competition 89 73 Financing difficulties 19 31 Lack of adequate personnel 13 13 Insufficient production equipment 11 11 Other services AMB Cataluña Weak demand 78 78 Increased competition 51 49 Financing difficulties 44 42 Lack of adequate personnel 5 6 Insufficient production equipment 4 5 6 The balance of the situation is the difference between the percentage of businesses indicating that bu- siness progress has been favorable and the percentage of businesses indicating that it has been unfavo- rable. And in the case of business prospects, it is the difference between the percentage of businesses which expect business will be favourable and the percentage of business that expect it will be unfavou- rable. Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 93 Those sectors that had least negative business performance in the first quarter 2014 were the industrial sector, hospitality and other services. Construction and retail trade had negative results but much less so than a year ago. So the situation has improved, although less than the areas mentioned above. At the same time, the industrial sector, hospitality and other services sectors were also those that had the best business prospects for the se- cond quarter of 2014, and they had positive results, meaning the percen- tage of businesses that expected business performance in their sector to be favourable exceeded the percentage that expected it to be unfavoura- ble. The hospitality sector had the most positive forecasts, meaning the difference between the positive and negative percentages is greater. The- se were 39% and 5% respectively, while for the industrial sector it was 27% and 21%, respectively, and for other services, 27% and 18%, respec- tively. The prospects for retail and construction for the second quarter 2014 are still negative, but less than the previous quarter and less than a year ago. Figure 3.2. Situation of business performance, first quarter of 2014 by sectors. (Balance7 in %) Figure 3.3. Perspectives for business performance, second quarter of 2014 by sectors. (Balance7 in %) Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat Source: Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and Idescat 2012.I 2012.II II III III IV IV 2013.I 2013.I II II III III IV IV 2014.I 2014.I II Construction Construction Retail Retail Hospitality Hospitality Other services Other services Industry Industry 60 40 20 0 -20 -40 -60 -80 -100 40 20 0 -20 -40 -60 -80 -100 7 The balance of the situation is the difference between the percentage of businesses indicating that bu- siness progress has been favorable and the percentage of businesses indicating that it has been unfavo- rable. And in the case of business prospects, it is the difference between the percentage of businesses which expect business will be favourable and the percentage of business that expect it will be unfavou- rable. 7 The balance of the situation is the difference between the percentage of businesses indicating that bu- siness progress has been favorable and the percentage of businesses indicating that it has been unfavo- rable. And in the case of business prospects, it is the difference between the percentage of businesses which expect business will be favourable and the percentage of business that expect it will be unfavou- rable. 94 4. List of graphs and tables Figures 1.1. Trends in business performance across the whole economy. Situation from 2012 to 2013. Comparison with Catalonia 2..1. Factors that limit business performance across the whole economy. Comparison 2012-2013 3.1. Business performance across the whole economy, first semester, 2014. 3.2. Situation of business performance, first quarter of 2014 by sectors. 3.3. Perspectives for business performance, second quarter of 2014 by sectors Tables 1.1. Business climate across the whole economy. Comparison with Catalonia. 1.2. Business climate in the industrial sector. Comparison with Catalonia. 1.3. Business climate in the construction sector. Comparison with Catalonia. 1.4. Business climate in the retail and commerce sector. Comparison with Catalonia. 1.5. Business climate in the hotels and restaurants sector. Comparison with Catalonia. 1.6. Business climate for the other services sector. Comparison with Catalonia. 5. Appendix on Methodology Sectors featured in the Survey on Business Climate: Industry 01: Food, beverages and tobacco (CCAE-2009: 10 to 12) 02: Textiles, clothing, leather and footwear (CCAE-2009: 13 to 15) 03: Wood and cork, paper and printing industries (CCAE-2009: 16 to 18) 04: Chemical, rubber and other non metal minerals industries (CCAE-2009: 20 to 23) 05: Metallurgy and manufacture of metal products (CCAE-2009: 24 and 25) 06: Manufacture of machinery and mechanical equipment, and electrical products, computers, electronic and optical products (CCAE-2009: 26 to 28) 07 Other industries (CCAE-2009: 05 09 to 19 29 to 33 35 to 39) Construction Section F of the CCAE-2009 is considered completely, with divisions: 41: Construction of buildings 42: Construction of civil engineering works 43: Specialised construction activities Retail 01: Retail trade of food products, beverages and tobacco specialized (CCAE-2009: 472) 02: Retail trade of household goods, cultural and recreational goods in specialized shops (CCAE-2009: 475 and 476) 03: Other types of retail (CCAE-2009: 473, 474, 477, 478, 479) 04: Retail in non-specialized shops (CCAE-2009: 471) 05: Sale and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (CCAE-2009: 45) 06: Wholesale trading and intermediary trading (CCAE-2009: 46) Barcelona Report 2014. Special Report 95 Hotels and restaurants CCAE-2009: 55 and 56 55: Accommodation Services 56: Food and Beverage Services Other services 01: Information and communication (CCAE-2009: 58 to 63) 02: Legal and accounting activities (CCAE-2009: 69) 03: R&D, advertising and market research and scientific and technical activities (CCAE-2009: 71 to 75) 04: Administrative and support service activities (CCAE-2009: 77 to 82) 05: Other Services (CCAE-2009: 49 53, 64 66, 68, 92, 93 and 96)