Spain's Expansion Abroad

As of recent, companies in Spain have been following a common trend of expanding overseas. The country’s ability to grow in foreign markets is on the rise as successful Spanish companies turn their focus to manufacturing and developing new products in emerging markets abroad. Over the last three years, Spain has maintained a 1.8 percent share of world trade despite the rise of China and the Far East. As Spain looks to retain its position as a strong exporting nation by expanding into new markets, the domestic workforce will face steady unemployment.

Businesses in some of Spain’s fastest growing sectors, including technology and renewables, expect to reduce or at best maintain their domestic workforces as they expand into foreign markets. With Spanish companies moving into emerging markets such as Brazil and Russia, the unemployment rate in Spain could remain around 20 percent for several years to come. Companies will make an effort to correct the problem of unemployment while also maintaining further expansion. Many Spanish companies will look to hire upcoming graduates from Spain’s technical colleges and universities ranked third in Europe. Spain’s major obstacle may be unemployment but expansion overseas will continue to provide companies with many opportunities.

Everyday Spain has no less than ten companies making deals with foreign countries meaning exports will continue to be a major aspect of Spain’s economy. Exports to China increased to Spain’s highest levels last year valued at 2.6 billion euros. As government officials continue to promote foreign trade, Spanish companies hope to maintain their success abroad. Expanding overseas is also attracting foreign companies to invest in Spain. Recently, GlaxoSmithKline has made plans to open a large research and development center in Spain to improve its products. This is not the only case of foreign investment in Spain. During the past three years, foreign investment in Spain has increased 5 percent at a time when the European Union has seen a 20 percent decrease. These factors will hopefully produce jobs for the domestic workforce in Spain while also allowing further movement into foreign markets.