During the first year of Brexit, Spanish exports to British soil have grown strongly after recovering much of the ground lost in the pandemic, while imports continue to fall. According to the latest data published by the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, shipping goods to london amounted to 18,817 million euros in 2021, 10.6% more than a year earlier, but still 4.3% below the data from 2019, that is, its pre-Covid level. In this way, Spain recovered last year two thirds of the 2,650 million euros lost in sales during 2020.
However, national exports grew by 21.2% in general last year, a rate that practically doubles the rise with the United Kingdom. On the contrary, the imports of goods from Spain to producers The British fell again for the second consecutive year and fell by 7.8% in 2021, to 8,631 million euros, 27% below the figure recorded before the pandemic. This evolution contrasts with the general trend of Spanish purchases abroad, which the last year they shot up 24.8%; in fact, from the list with the nearly 60 most important trading partners for the country, drops were only observed in four other markets besides the British.
“asymmetric” relationship
The trade balance with the United Kingdom was already positive for Spain and now it is even more so once it has proceeded to its official exit from the EU, to exceed 10,000 million euros. “We saw that there was an impact of Brexit in the first months of 2021 in our exports, but later they grew (…). Without a doubt, in 2022 we will recover pre-pandemic levels,” the Secretary of State for Commerce, Xiana Méndez, predicted this week in a meeting with journalists.
He also explained that this “asymmetry” between exports and imports is related to London’s difficulties in complying with all the controls and requirements set forth in the free trade agreement signed with Brussels after its departure from the European Union (EU) for reasons “technical, capacity and human resources“. The United Kingdom continues to be the fifth most important destination for Spanish products (after France, Germany, Italy and Portugal) and maintains the same position as before Covid-19, while in the purchases chapter it appears in the ninth position, two places behind the one it held in 2019 after being overtaken by Belgium and Portugal and with Switzerland and Turkey about to overtake it.
An example of the importance of Spanish exports to the United Kingdom is the Andalusian company Finca Las Lomas, which annually sells more than 20 million kilos of fruit and vegetables in British supermarkets. “It is true that the situation was added to Brexit of the Covid pandemic, but in general the export dynamics have been maintained and there have been hardly any incidents at the borders,” company officials told EFE.
His experience indicates that the increase in consumption at home during the pandemic was added to “the relaxation of Brexit requirements both for entry and exit”, which allowed the business relationship “It remained stable and without incident.” Like the Secretary of State, from Fincas Las Lomas they detect that the goodbye to the EU has led to “a lack of work internally” in the United Kingdom, which favors exports of products “already made, processed and packaged” such as your case, since it allows you to “put them up for sale directly” without the need for more workers in the previous phases.
Demand for cars and precious metals
By type of product, the automobile and accessories sector leads Spanish exports to British soil with more than 4,650 million euros, more than in 2020 but still below preCovid figures. In proportional terms, the rise in sales of “stones, precious materials and jewelry” stands out, which rises to second position by adding more than 1,560 million euros, more than double that before the pandemic.
A more linear evolution shows both the legumes and vegetables (1,135 million) as well as fruits (1,080 million), which did not stop climbing, although slightly even in 2020, in the midst of a health crisis. On the import side, purchases from Spain to the British automobile sector stand out with 1,135 million euros, even so 37% less than two years earlier; Purchases of “fuels, mineral oils and electricity” and pharmaceutical products also fell sharply, with drops of 50% in both cases compared to 2019.
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