Revenue growth limited to 3.1% in fourth quarter | Salaries at these companies increased by 3.7% over the full year
The energy crisis, with a sharp increase in energy costs for companies, has affected the activity of large Spanish companies. Particularly in the last quarter of 2022, when there was a notable moderation in corporate sales, which were already half way up after a year marked by the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
This is evident from the statistics on turnover, employment and salaries at large companies published on Wednesday by the Tax Authorities, which show how the total turnover of these groups barely grew by 3.1% in the last quarter of the year. A figure lower than the 5.7% of the third, far from the 8.7% of the second and also lower than the 6.1% recorded between January and March.
It should be taken into account that these data are deflated and correct for seasonal and calendar variations. Without this effect, sales would have increased by 14.4% in the last quarter and by almost 21% for the full year.
The Tax and Customs Administration considers as “large companies” natural or legal persons whose business volume has exceeded 6.01 million euros during the analyzed calendar year. In total, they account for just under 1% of VAT applicants, but their weight in the turnover of all companies exceeds 60%.
It is true that the rate of increase accelerated to 3.2% in December, from 1.8% in November. But the quarterly figures show the impact of the crisis on activity. The slowdown was noticeable both in what companies sell in Spain and what they export. In concrete terms, domestic sales barely grew by 2.3%, the weakest quarter of the entire year. And sales outside our borders were up 5.8%, well below the double-digit mark indicated by the reference in the rest of the quarters.
Nevertheless, the good performance in the first part of the year resulted in a total sales increase of 5.9% for the full year, thanks to the attraction of exports, with a remarkable growth of 9.6% in 2022, higher than that of the last year. This offset the lower impact of domestic sales, which barely grew by 4.7%, with resistance from the construction component, which fell by 8.5%.
More abruptly, imports fell by 6.3% between October and December, compared to growth of 5% at the start of the year. That collapse in the last quarter meant imports barely grew at 1.7% throughout 2022, compared to 10% in 2021.
In short, sales continued to grow, but at a much slower pace in a year marked by the economic effects of the war and rising prices.
In this context, the statistics also show that the number of employees in large companies grew by 5.2% year-on-year. The salary of these employees (measured as average gross income) increased by 3.7% in 2022. Although the figure is lower than the average inflation rate of 8.4% in 2022, it is the largest increase since 2008. And it also exceeds the average 2.78% increase in collective bargaining wages.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
