Spain Balance of Trade

Spain runs systemic trade deficits due to high imports of fuel and high added value goods. In 2017, Spain's trade deficit rose 31.9 percent from the previous year to EUR 25 billion, mainly due to a surge in domestic demand and an increase in energy prices. Within the Autonomous Communities, the biggest exporters were Catalonia (26 percent of total exports), Andalusia, Madrid and Valencia (11 percent each) and the Basque Country (9 percent); while the largest importers were Catalonia (28 percent of total imports), Madrid (20 percent) Andalusia (10 percent) and Valencia (9 percent). The trade surplus with the EU widened to EUR 16 billion from EUR 13 billion in 2016, boosted by an increase in both surpluses with the Eurozone (EUR 9 billion vs EUR 7 billion in 2016) and with the non-euro area countries of the EU (EUR 7 billion vs EUR 6 billion). With regard to non-EU countries, the trade deficit increased to EUR 41 billion from EUR 32 billion in the previous year, as the deficit with Asia rose to EUR 35 billion from EUR 29 billion and that with Africa went up to EUR 6 billion from EUR 4 billion. Also, the gap with Latin America grew to EUR 2 billion from EUR 60 million in 2016, while that with North America was almost unchanged at EUR 1 billion.