Commercial sector. Employed persons. By activity groups
| Sale and repair of motor vehicles | Wholesale trade and intermediaries | Retail trade and repairs | Catalonia | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employed persons (number) | 48,079 | 233,920 | 299,409 | 581,408 |
| Salaried (number) | 40,967 | 214,503 | 247,775 | 503,245 |
| No salaried (number) | 7,113 | 19,418 | 51,634 | 78,165 |
| Employees equivalent to full-time (number) | 39,045 | 207,092 | 215,772 | 461,909 |
| Hours worked by employees (thousands) | 69,579 | 366,074 | 385,052 | 820,705 |
| Source: Idescat, based on the INE's Structural business statistics in the trade sector. | ||||
Last update: July 7, 2025.
Methodological note
Definition of concepts
- Hours worked by employees
- Total number of hours actually worked by employees for production during the reference period. It includes the total number of usual hours and overtime.
- Employees
- Workers linked to the company by means of a work contract who receive remuneration in the form of wages, salaries, commissions, bonuses, fixed prices or in kind. It includes both permanent and temporary personnel, either full-time or part-time.
Methodological aspects
The main source of trade statistics is the Structural business statistics in the trade sector, called the Annual Trade Survey prior to the reference year 2014, conducted by the INE in accordance with European Union regulations, whereby the statistics for Catalonia are exploited by Idescat. General information is obtained on the evolution of commerce and three main groups or sections that it is made up of:
- sale and repair of motor vehicles and motocycles
- wholesale
- retail
This breakdown presents the tables showing the main results for macromagnitudes and employed persons. In turn, these large groups are subdivided into branches that cover all specialities of commerce. For this smaller breakdown, tables showing macromagnitudes and employed persons are also presented.
Since 2008, the Annual commerce survey has been adapted to the new National classification of economic activities (CNAE-2009). This change involves a shift in the series that prevents inter-annual comparison between most sectors and some variables.
The correspondences between the sectors used and the Catalan classification of economic activities (CCAE-2009) is as follows:
| CCAE-2009 | Groups of activities |
| 45 | Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles |
| 46 | Wholesale trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles |
| 47 | Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles |
| 49-53 | Transportation and storage |
| 55,56 | Accommodation and food service activities |
| 58-63 | Information and communication |
| 68 | Real estate activities |
| 69-75 | Professional, scientific and technical activities |
| 77-82 | Administrative and support service activities |
| 90-93 | Arts, entertainment and recreation |
| 95,96 | Other services |
Several methodological improvements were applied to the Structural Business Statistics in 2016. The results for 2016 are therefore not strictly comparable with those for previous years.
For further information about these statistics, you may check the methodology.