In July 2023, business creation in Spain experienced a significant rebound, recording a growth of 17% compared to the same month last year. This increase places the Total number of new commercial companies at 9,704, the highest figure for July since 2007according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) published this Wednesday.
This notable rebound reverses the negative trend observed in May and June, months in which year-on-year declines were recorded. The positive data for July allow Cumulative growth in the first seven months of the year remained at 5.4%, while company dissolutions in the same period were reduced by 5%.
Despite the growth in the number of new companies, the capital subscribed for their creation decreased by 2.6%, reaching 343 million euros. Thus, The average capital per company amounts to 35,386 euros, which represents a decrease of 16.7% compared to the same month of 2023.
Increase in dissolutions and capital increases
At the same time, the number of dissolved companies in July also saw a slight increase of 2.4% year-on-year, with a total of 1,585 companies closing down. This is equivalent to 51 companies disappear per day during the month of Julythe majority of these closures being voluntary (77.7%), while 10.8% of dissolutions were due to mergers and the remaining 11.4% to other causes.
Regarding the companies that decided to increase their capital, the INE report also revealed a moderate growth of 0.6% compared to the previous year. In total, 2,277 companies carried out capital increases, for a total amount exceeding 1,840 million euros, a figure that is however 8.9% lower than that recorded in July 2023. The average capital of these increases It amounted to 808,305 euros, with a decrease of 9.4%.
Sectoral and regional distribution of business dynamism
In sectoral terms, Trade was the most dynamic economic activity, representing 17.4% of new businesses created in July, followed by the real estate, finance and insurance sectors, which represented 15.8%. On the other hand, the commercial sector also leads the dissolution of companies, with 17.3% of the total, followed by the construction sector (15.8%).
At the regional level, Madrid was the autonomous community that created the most new companies, with a total of 2,254 companies incorporated in July, followed by Catalonia (2,043) and Andalusia (1,564). On the other hand, La Rioja (45), Navarre (69) and Cantabria (84) were the communities with the least commercial dynamism during the month.
However, not all regions recorded growth. Four autonomous communities recorded a drop in business creations in July: Murcia (-20.2%), Asturias (-8.2%), the Canary Islands (-2.8%) and Extremadura (-2.1%). On the other hand, the communities that saw the greatest increases were La Rioja (+73.1%), Cantabria (+71.4%) and Navarra (+64.3%).
The July balance sheet confirms a clear reactivation of business creation in Spain after the declines of previous months. Although the capital subscribed for the creation of new companies has registered a decrease, the increase in the number of companies reflects a positive trend in the country’s economic fabric, in a context of moderate economic recovery. This dynamism is particularly evident in key sectors such as commerce and real estate, as well as in the country’s main autonomous communities.
