Press Release 16/07/2014

STATISTICS FOR SERVICES PROFESSIONAL AND BUSINESS 2012

94% of the companies engaged in professional and business activities in the Basque Country possessed fewer than 10 employees and accounted for 44% of the total turnover in 2012

Legal and accounting activities took in 20% of the employment within the sector and their turnover accounted for 29% of the total

The professional and business sector (professional and scientific activities as well as auxiliary services) in the Basque Country is characterised as being a highly fragmented sector, wherein 94.3% of the companies had fewer than 10 employees in 2012, according to Eustat data. These companies employed 37.2% of the number of people employed in the sector as a whole and their turnover represented 43.7% of the total turnover within business and professional activities.

For their part, the establishments with 100 or more employees only accounted for 0.5% of the total, although they provided work to more than 30% of those employed and represented 20.2% of the total turnover in 2012.

In 2012, the business and professional sector in the Basque Country employed 116,984 people, spread over 27,879 establishments.

The average number of people employed by these establishments amounted to 4.2, ranging from an average of 2.3 employees working within legal and accounting establishments to an average of 31.1 employees involved in employment-related activities, and 17.9 for those working in research and development establishments. The other sectors employ approximately three people on average (advertising and market research 3.3, rental activities 3.1, architectural and engineering services 2.9 and travel agencies 2.7).

The turnover stood at 8,514 million euros, that is, 72,782 euros per employed person.

The disaggregation of the sector into sub-sector activities evidences that professional and scientific activities accounted for 66.3% of the total turnover. The remaining 33.7% corresponded to auxiliary services.

Within the breakdown of professional and scientific activities, legal and accounting activities accounted for 43.4%, and architectural and engineering activities for 33.9%. The remaining activities are split between research and development, 8.5%, advertising and market research, 7.6% and other professional activities, 6.6%.

In turn, 21.5% of the turnover in auxiliary services was accounted for by travel agencies, 14.6% by rental activities and 6.7% by work-related activities, with 57.1% accounted for by other service activities.

23,389 people were employed in legal activities, 20% of the total for the sector, along with 10,325 establishments, i.e. 37% of the total number of establishments in the sector. Sales per person obtained within this group rose to 104,831 euros.

For their part, architectural and engineering services employed 17,598 people, i.e. 15% of the total employment for the sector, and 6,000 establishments, i.e. 21.5% of the total number of establishments. The turnover per person obtained in this group rose to 108,599 euros.

7,127 people were employed in research and development activities, i.e. 6.1% of the total, distributed between 399 establishments, i.e. 1.4% of the total, with an average income totalling 67,312 euros per person.

For their part, 1,345 establishments devoted themselves to advertising activities and market research activities, employing 4,408 people, each of whom earning an average income of 97,140 euros.

Employment-related activities employed 6,694 people distributed amongst 215 establishments. In the 905 establishments involved in rental activities, there were 2,808 employees, and the 742 travel agency establishments employed 1,982 people. The remaining 52,978 jobs, corresponding to 7,948 establishments, were within other professional activities or services.

Personnel expenditure increased to 3,465 euros, of which legal and accounting activities accounted for 23.7%, and architectural and engineering services 18%.

By Province, Bizkaia accounted for 60.8% of the turnover for business and professional activities, Gipuzkoa, 26.1%, and Álava, 13.1%. By province, the percentages for each of the sub-sectors are very similar. In Bizkaia, 59.7% was accounted for by professional activities and 62.9% by auxiliary services; in Gipuzkoa, 26.8% was accounted for by the former sub-sector and 24.7% by the latter; and for Álava, the figures were 13.5% and 12.4%, respectively.

With regards to employment, 58.6% of staff employed in the sector worked in Bizkaia, with 27.8% working in Gipuzkoa and the remaining 13.5% in Álava.

Provincial distribution of employment within professional and scientific activities stood at 13.6% for Álava, 55.4% for Bizkaia and 31% for Gipuzkoa. Amongst the data for the auxiliary services sub-sector, 13.5% of employment was provided in Álava, 61.8% in Bizkaia and 24.7% in Gipuzkoa.

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tel: 945 01 75 62 More press releases about the Statistics for services Professional and Business