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- SPAIN

National Association: ANFAC

Important for Spain and important for Europe

Spain’s vibrant automobile industry is very much a post-war phenomenon. The first car plant was built in 1950 and by the early 1970s a wave of investment by the major US and European companies had established the industry as the country's second most important in the manufacturing sector. It now accounts for 7% of all industrial employment, 5% of gross domestic product and 26% of the nation’s exports. Key markets are France, Germany, Italy and Great Britain.

Its size and importance is underlined by its significance at the European level. Passenger car production in Spain ranks number 3 in the Union but the country occupies the top position as a producer of industrial vehicles. In 2006 passenger vehicle production reached 2.77 million vehicles while output of industrial vehicles was 570,000 units. More than 80% of its production in this category is exported to other EU Member States.

The industry is located in several parts of the country: SEAT began its operations in Barcelona, while General Motors Espana is located in the Zaragoza and Cadiz areas, Ford Espana is near Valencia, and a number of companies are placed around Madrid. Productivity performance at many of these plants is very competitive and two of Spain’s best are in the European top ten.

R&D activity is not high in the Spanish automotive industry, largely because most manufacturing activity is owned by multinational groups that carry out R&D activities elsewhere. The parts and components industry presents a different picture. Major operators include several Spanish owned companies with growing R&D activities. Turnover in the sector was €31 billion in 2006.

Spain
Automotive employment* 159,163
 as share of total manufacturing 6.2%
Production of motor vehicles 2,777,435
 of which: production of passenger cars 2,078,639
Car tax revenues (€ bn) 27.3
  as share of GDP 2.8%
Car fleet (in 1,000) 20,250
Car density (per 1,000 population) 456

* only direct employment; total employment depending on automotive sector is around five times higher

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