The unemployment rate was 16.2% on average in 2009 in Catalonia, according to the EPA. The make unemployment rate was 17.1% and that of women was 15.2%. By provinces, the unemployment rate was 18.2% in Girona, 17% in Tarragona, 16.2% in Barcelona and 11.4% in Lleida. In Spain, the unemployed population represented 18% of the active population.
The number of trips by foreign tourists arriving in Catalonia had fallen by 5.6% on a year over year basis in the fourth quarter of 2009, which generated a reduction by 10.9% in the number of overnight stays, according to data from the Survey of tourist movements at frontiers (Frontur).
The Governing Council passed at its recent meeting on 26th of January the Annual programme for statistical action for 2010, as part of the Statistical plan for Catalonia 2006–2009 that has been extended until the Parliament of Catalonia passes the next statistical plan.
The IPI had increased by 3.9% on a year over year basis in Catalonia in December 2009. All industrial sectors, apart from equipment goods, recorded increases. Energy had the biggest increase (11.7%). Considering the calendar effect, the IPI had increased by 0.3% with respect to one year earlier.
The first edition of the Nursery Competition for Surveys and Experiments has been announced. It is being organised by the Faculty of Mathematics and Statistics at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia, with the support of the Statistical Institute of Catalonia.
The number of overnight stays on campsites had increased by 14.2% on a year over year basis in Catalonia, in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to the Survey of campsite occupancy. By origin of travellers, domestic overnight stays had increased by 24.2% and those of foreign tourists had fallen by 3.9%, on a year over year basis.
Exports fell by 3.2% on a year over year basis in Catalonia in November 2009, according to provisional data from Customs. By economic destination, only capital goods increased (0.4%). Imports fell by 1.4% and consumer goods were the only group that recorded an increase (3.5%).
The urban retail climate in Catalonia during the fourth quarter of 2009 had a negative balance of responses of 41.6 percentage points, as 9.3% of the establishments stated that business was going well while 51% said that it was going poorly.
Consumer expenditure by Catalan households amounted to 95,083 million euros in 2008, which represents an annual average expenditure of 34,511 euros, according to the Family budget survey. More than half of household expenditure, 55%, was spent on primary needs goods: 14.2% on foods, 6% on clothes and footwear, 30.2% on expenditure related with the home and 4.6% on furniture and domestic equipment. Expenditure on clothing and footwear and on furniture and domestic equipment continued to fall in keeping with the trend that started in 2006.
The unemployment rate was 17.01% in the fourth quarter of 2009 in Catalonia, according to the EPA. Unemployed men represent 18.15% of the active population and women 15.63%. From this quarter, Idescat is publishing a new indicator of the short-term economic situation, which collects information on the relation to activity of main family homes. Idescat also provides its users with retrospective series on the employed population by activity branch and activity sector for the 2000-2007 period using the new Catalan classification of economic activities 2009 (CCAE-2009).
Overnight stays for rural tourism increased by 2% on a year over year basis in Catalonia in the fourth trimester of 2009, according to the Survey of occupancy of rural tourism accommodation. By origin of travellers, overnight stays by domestic tourists increased by 2.7% and those of foreigners fell by 14.6% with respect to a year earlier.
The IVGS at current prices recorded a year over year decrease of 13% in Catalonia in November 2009. The turnover of food products fell by 13.3% and that of non food products by 12.7%.
In 2008, a total of 8,862 non-profit making entities received finance from the Generalitat de Catalunya or from its autonomous entities, according to the statistics on the financing and purchasing of services from the Generalitat in the non profit sector. This economic flow increased by 0.2% with respect to the previous total to a total of 3,262 million euros, which amounted to 7.4% of the total budget liquidated by the aforementioned conglomerate of Autonomous administration.
El Barcelonès and El Garraf were the counties with the highest taxable base per contributor in 2007, with 23,097 and 22,503 euros, respectively. By municipalities, Matadepera and Sant Cugat del Vallés had the highest taxable base per contributor, with 40,185 and 38,585 euros, respectively.
Catalans made 5,219.2 thousand trips that generated 19,357.9 thousand overnight stays in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to data from the Survey on travel by Catalans. The number of overnight stays not at a second home was 13,209.6 thousand. Of these, 44% had a foreign destination, 31% in the rest of Spain and the remaining 24.9% were within Catalonia.
Marc and Paula were the most frequent names for babies in 2008. Marc appeared 1,419, and was the most used name for newborns in 2008, as it has been for the last twelve years. The second most common name was Àlex/Álex (963), which stays second in the ranking, as does Pol, in third and used to name 926 children. Paula, used 1,061 times, was the most popular name for girls. Second place was taken by Carla with a frequency of 1,006, and Lucía (998) was third this year.
In December 2009, the industrial price index in Catalunya had fallen by 1.4% with respect to the same month of the previous year and for Spain as a whole it had increased by 0.4%. The rate recorded in Catalonia confirms the downward trend in prices that started in February of last year, while for Spain there has been a change of direction. Equipment goods are the only major industrial sector with an increase in prices (0.9%); the remainder registered decreases, led by energy (-4.9%), intermediate goods (-1.5%) and consumer goods (-0.6%).
Overnight stays in hotel establishments had increased by 9.6% on a year over year basis in Catalonia, in December 2009, according to the Hotel occupancy survey. Overnight stays by domestic tourists had increased by 0.2% , and those of foreign tourism by 20.2%. The number of travellers has increased by 9.7% with respect to the previous year.