The Tertiary and Primary Sectors of the Spanish Economy
The Growth of the Tertiary Sector
The Infrastructure Sector
This activity consists of providing tertiary services to society. The service sector includes many different activities such as transport, trade, etc. The process of outsourcing gained traction in Spain in the 1970s, though not uniformly across the country. The most significant outsourcing occurred in Catalonia, Madrid, the Balearic Islands, Valencia, and Andalusia.
Transport
Transport is a key factor in the spatial, social, and economic organization
Read MoreSpanish Industrial Structure, Policies, and Areas
Spanish Industrial Structure
Current Situation
Mature sectors such as metallurgy (steel, transformed metal), appliances, shipbuilding, textiles, and clothing are facing declining competitiveness and reduced demand. These sectors are undergoing a necessary conversion process.
Dynamic, high-productivity sectors like automotive, chemicals (petrochemical, chemical transformation), and food industry benefit from specialization, secured demand, and foreign capital.
High-technology sectors, including electrical
Read MoreSpain’s Economic Transformation in the 19th Century: From Agrarian Reform to Industrialization
Economic Change in 19th Century Spain
Agrarian Changes and Confiscation
The liberal revolution brought significant legal changes that transformed Spain’s agricultural landscape. These included:
- Elimination of tied land
- Abolition of the judicial system
- Freedom of land enclosure, crop marketing, and pricing
- Ending tithes to the Church, replaced by state aid
A striking development was the confiscation of Church lands. Driven by enormous debt, the Crown issued the 1836 decree of confiscation of regular clergy
Read MoreGlossary of Geography, Cartography, and Geopolitics Terms
Geography, Cartography, and Geopolitics Glossary
Cartography and Geography
Contour (Isohipsas)
Solid lines used in the representation of relief on topographic maps. The equidistance (difference in altitude between two successive curves) is 20 meters in the National Topographic Map scale 1/50000. Master curves are thicker and represent elevations that are multiples of equidistance.
Geographic Area
Understood as a social product (i.e., a result of human activity on nature), its objective is the study of
Read MoreRural Spain: Environment, Agriculture, and New Uses
1. Physical and Human Factors in Rural Spain
1.1 The Natural Environment
Traditional farming was heavily influenced by physical factors, which continue to shape agriculture in Spain, often unfavorably:
- Relief: High altitudes and steep slopes
- Climate: Low and unpredictable rainfall
- Soils: Generally poor quality
1.2 Agrarian Structure
Traditional agrarian structure was labor-intensive and technologically underdeveloped.
A. Demographic Changes
Rural depopulation due to farm mechanization and low incomes has
Read MoreR&D Investment & Regional GDP in Spain (2005)
R&D Investment in Relation to Regional GDP in Spain (2005)
This table shows the investment in R&D by companies in relation to regional GDP by regions in Spain in 2005.
Regional Differences in R&D Investment
The Community of Madrid, Navarra, Catalonia, and the Basque Country invest the most in R&D, with over 1% of their GDP. These are the most developed industrial areas. The least developed or declining areas are the Balearic Islands, Murcia, Castilla-La Mancha, and Cantabria. The other
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