Press release 02/11/2013
The total number of Basque establishments dropped for the fourth consecutive year
The net balance between start-up establishments and those that stopped trading was negative by more than 7000 establishments
of economic activity and traded in 184,471 establishments (factories, shops and offices), according to Eustat data.
The number of establishments fell in every sector compared to the previous year, except in Public Administration, Education & Health, which gained 0.9%. Real Estate 18.9% of all employment.
The largest sector was Trade, Transport and Hotel Management & Catering, with 38.2% in all establishments, followed by Professional Activities & Support Services (15.55%) and Construction (13.5%).
Trade, Transport and Hotel Management & Catering was the most important sector in terms of employment, occupying 25.9% of the Basque Country total recorded by the Directory. Industry, Energy & Sewerage came next, with 21.7% of the total, and Public Administration, Education & Health with 20.1%.
The sectoral structure differed in the three Provinces. Thus, the greatest provider of employment in Álva was Industry, Energy & Health, with 28.6% of all the employment in the province; followed by Trade, Transport and Hotel Management & Catering, with 21.7%.
In Gipuzkoa, on the other hand, Trade, Transport and Hotel Management & Catering, with 25.9% of the total employment recorded was very similar to Industry, Energy & Sewerage, with 25.4% of the total. Public Administration, Education & Health came third, with 19.3%.
In Bizkaia, the Trade, Transport and Hotel Management & Catering sector predominated, with 26.9% of the total employment in the province. The Public Administration, Education & Health sector came second, with 20.1%, whereas Industry, Energy & Sewerage, with 17.1% of the total, was in third place.
The distribution of establishments by size in 2011 was very similar to the previous year. Barely 2,314 establishments, 1.3% of the total, had 50 or more employees, despite accounting for 37.7% of employment. On the other hand, 137,997 establishments, almost three-quarters of the total, employed less than 3 people and accounted for just 19.7% of all employment.
As regards the average size of the establishments by branch of activity, the greatest concentration of employment was recorded in Industry, Energy & Sewerage, both in terms of the Basque Country overall, with an average size of 14.1 employees per establishment, and at provincial level, with Álava standing out with 18.3, and the average size in Gipuzkoa and Bizkaia being 14.1 and 12.6 employees per establishment, respectively. The average size of the establishments in the Public Administration, Education & Health sector was also noteworthy, standing at 14.3 in Álava, 10.7 in Gipuzkoa and 10.6 in Bizkaia.
COMPANIES
Of the total of companies, legal units that provide support for establishment's activities, 97.6% were based in the Basque Country and 3891 in the rest of the State. Bizkaia, with 83,284 companies, contributed just over half; Gipuzkoa 56,491 and Álava 21,851.
The average size of companies in the Basque Country remained stable, with 5.3 employees per company and 4.7 per establishment. The analysis by legal status reveals, however, noticeable differences. Companies under individual ownership only had 1.4 employees, both per company and establishment, whereas for the other legal forms these averages reached 10.9 and 8.8 employees per company and establishment, respectively.
BUSINESS DEMOGRAPHICS
Leaving the Agriculture, Livestock & Fishing sector aside, the net balance between start-up establishments and those that stopped trading was -7269.
The greatest rotation was seen in the branches of Trade, Transportation & Hostelry, with 36.2% of new openings and 32.0% of closures; 18.3% of new openings and 23.1% of closures in Construction; and Professional Activities & Support Services, with figures of 17.7% and 12.9%, respectively.
In the analysis of demography by legal status, the establishments created under the individual ownership formula stand out for having generated 67.3% of new openings and 45.5% of closures.
All types of legal status lost establishments. The one that lost the fewest is Other Legal Status (37) and most were lost in Other Companies & Associations and Limited Companies, which lost 3176 and 3138 establishments, respectively.
In terms of employment, individually owned establishments accounted for 42.2% of jobs created and 25.6% of jobs lost. Following these, Limited Company owned establishments accounted for 32.3% of jobs created and 38.6% of jobs lost.
In terms of establishment size, the most dynamic stratum was that of 2 employees or under, as has become the norm. This stratum alone accounted for 91.7% of all registrations and 86.7% of all closures.
On the contrary, the stratum of Large Stores, those with 50 or more employees, only accounted for 0.2% of all registrations and the same percentage of all closures. On the other hand, it accounted for 8.7% of all new jobs created and 11.1% of all jobs lost.
Note: Companies and establishments belonging to the Primary sector have been included in the Basque Country's Directory of Economic Activities for the first time.
For further information:
Basque Statistics Office
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Tel:+34-945-01 75 00 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01 E-mail: eustat@eustat.eus
Contact: Federico Gutiérrez
Tel:+34-945-01 75 43 Fax:+34-945-01 75 01
Further press releases on the Economic Activities Directory