Spanish economy grows 0.1% in Q3

The Spanish economy grew by 0.1 percent in the third quarter, leaving recession behind, according to data released on Wednesday by the Bank of Spain. This growth confirmed the predictions of the Spanish government, who had assured several times that Spain would grow in the second half of 2013. Spanish gross domestic product (GDP) contracted for the first time in the second quarter of 2011, when it fell by 0.1 percent. It contracted by 0.3 percent in the third quarter of 2011 and the economy fell into recession since then. The Bank of Spain also said employment fell by 0.1 percent in the third quarter, while in annual terms, it decreased by 3.1 percent. Domestic demand, which has been hit hard by the crisis, fell by 0.3 percent from the second quarter to the third quarter, said the bank, which emphasized that private consumption increased by 0.1 percent for the first time in a year and a half. Foreign demand rose by 0.4 percent in the third quarter, as opposed to an increase of 6 percent registered in the second quarter, while imports decreased by 0.7 percent. The government expects economic growth to consolidate in the last quarter of the year and 2014. However, this will not solve one of the biggest problems of the crisis in Spain: high unemployment. Experts agree that the impact of economic growth in unemployment will not be seen in the short term.