The Economic Situation Report (ICE), published by the Santiago Financial Club, with the collaboration of the Xunta, provides a complete x-ray of the economic reality of the province of La Coruña, both at the regional and municipal level. On this basis, The province of A Coruña continues to consolidate its position as one of the main drivers of economic activity and demographics in Galicia. It combines a high population density, a strong natural resource base and a dynamic urban and commercial infrastructure.
The report reveals that the cities of La Coruña and Santiago continued to play fundamental rolesboth as business and administrative centers and in their role as leaders in culture, innovation and sustainability within the province.
Throughout 2023, the economy of the Herculean city showed a positive, moderate but sustained developmentwith signs of recovery in key sectors like tourism and foreign trade, although with some problems in industry.
THE structure of the labor market continued to strengthen, with an increase in the active population, particularly women, and a greater proportion permanent contracts which slightly reduces the temporality. However, a dependence on the service sector and a feminization of unemployment persist. The province of La Coruña covers almost 27% of Galician territory.
In 2023 they exist in La Coruña 64 additional population centers compared to 2010 and 16 more compared to 2022. The population density of the province is considerably higher than the Galician average, with 141.4 inhabitants/km² and 91.3 inhabitants/km² respectively.
Primary sector and aging
He forest land use is the predominant sector in the regions of the province, with 57% allocated in 2023. The importance of the primary sector is also revealed in 29% of land intended for meadows and crops. In relation to the risks of the territory, last year there were 193 fires which burned 300 hectares. These are the lowest data in the last decade, with a drastic reduction compared to the previous period, with 2,694 hectares burned.
The province represents the 42% of the Galician populationwith 1,123,426 inhabitants. In 2023, and unlike the previous two years, a slight recovery in the population was observed both in A Coruña (+0.4%) and in Galicia (+0.3%), adding 4,704 inhabitants in the province and 8,960 in the community.
According to the CIE’s findings, this growth, although modest, reflects a stabilizing trend after years of demographic decline in several regions. The demographic structure of the province, and of Galicia in general, has continued to age, with 26% of the population over 64 years old in 2022.
Those under 16 remain at 12%. In immigration balance maintains positive values, with 12,537 additional people, which helps reduce population loss. The aging population and fewer births have increased the dependency index in the province, reflecting a greater burden on the working-age population and could pose a threat to the sustainability of services and supports. necessary social services for the elderly.
Stable growth
In 2023, Galicia’s GDP per capita continued its post-pandemic recovery, reaching annual growth of 3.2% and 1.4% in the first two quartersthus approaching the highest level recorded in 2019, with 22,556 euros at constant 2015 prices.
This improvement reflects a stabilization of growth after the intense recovery of 2021 and 2022. Although the disaggregated data by province are only available until 2020, La Coruña represented 44% of Galician GDP and maintained a notable economic weight in the region.
He service sector dominated economic activity in Galicia in 2023, contributing 72% of gross value added (GVA), while industry contributed 17%, construction 6% and the primary sector 5%. In the province, the sector continues to be predominant, with a weight of more than 75% in the GVA, especially in the regions of Santiago, La Coruña and Ferrol, where it represents between 77% and 83.7% of the total GVA .
In the field of economics and business, construction sector Its weight is significant, contributing 5.7% to Galicia’s GDP. Between 2015 and 2023, the growth rate of building permit was 4.5%. In 2023, 1,532 building permits were granted, or 40% of the total in Galicia (3,860). In the community, 138 fewer than in 2022 (16 for La Coruña).
He average price of a house in A Coruña it was the highest in the community, with 2,012 €/m². According to the latest available data for Galicia published by the Galician Institute of Statistics (IGE) corresponding to the second quarter of 2024, the services sector contributed to 65.7% of Galician GDP (71% of total GVA).
Tourism and renewable energies
Data for the year 2023 showed the same weight and a third were health services. commerce, transport and hospitalitywhile a quarter corresponded to public administration, health and education. The province of A Coruña continues to be a pillar of Galician industry, concentrating a significant percentage of Galicia’s industrial GVA.
A Coruña continues to be a benchmark in renewable energy, notably wind and biomasswith strategic projects in development that position the province as a key player in the Galician energy transition. In 2023, the manufacturing industry represents 71% of industrial GVA.
The sector has its greatest weight in O Sar (48%) and Eume (35%). The activity focuses on energy activity (electricity production) and metallurgy. For its part, tourism in La Coruña has maintained a recovery trend in 2023. The figures for hotel occupancy They approached pre-pandemic levels, with an average annual rate of 44%, and an occupancy rate of 49.2% in the city of La Coruña and 56.5% in Santiago. The province has more than 96,000 tourist placeswhich represents 35% of the Galician supply
In 2023, 1,671 people were established in the province of La Coruña. commercial companies which represented 42% of the total in Galicia. In Galicia, 180 more companies were created than in 2022, including 85 in A Coruña.
Exports
In 2023, Galician exports were of 30,073 million, of which 44.8% corresponded to the province of La Coruñawhich reduced its weight compared to the previous report in which these exports represented 48.5%. Exports are evolving better than imports, allowing 2023 to be closed with a surplus of 9,057 million, 3,429 in La Coruña, thus improving the trade balance of the previous year.
THE European countries They make 82% of total sales abroad. Automobiles and clothing are the sectors that concentrate the greatest number of sales abroad, with 48.4% last year. At the provincial level, in 2023, we see a reduction of 5.1%.
In 2023, A Coruña showed moderate work dynamics compared to other regions of Galicia, as evidenced by the slower growth of the working population and in a smaller decrease in unemployment of 7.3. Temporary employment remains high, which more clearly affects women, who also continue to experience greater difficulty accessing stable jobs, even with higher levels of education.
Between 2022 and 2023, the community experienced a notable reduction in registered unemploymentwith a drop of 8%. This equates to 11,699 fewer unemployed people. The service sector is the main driver of employment in Galicia, with more than 77% of contracts in the community and 80% in the province. Industry and construction are experiencing setbacks in this area.
Although the province has made progress in women’s employment and participation, problems persist, such as high temporality, the difficulty of self-employed workers to remain in the market and a strong dependence on the service sector. This data highlights the need to promote employment stability, reduce temporary work and diversify the economy to support sustainable reactivation in sectors such as industry and construction.
