The catalan government denies that companies are leaving catalonia, which is performing very well in attracting foreign investment

The minister of business and employment, Felip Puig, has denied that companies are withdrawing from Catalonia or that they are moving their tax base to other parts of the spanish state as a result of the catalan political process. In this regard, Puig assured that the causes of relocation are multiple, noting that many of the companies that have moved their financial headquarters have maintained their productive units, which are those that create the most jobs, in Catalonia. 

Puig recalled that in 2014 a total of 987 companies moved their tax base away from Catalonia; however, during the same period the community of Madrid had almost 1,400 firms being forced to relocate their financial headquarters as a result of the economic turmoil. Moreover, companies leaving Catalonia accounted for only 0.38 per cent of all catalan firms, while in Madrid this figure almost doubled in 2014 (0.66%).

Catalonia is performing very well in attracting foreign investment. During the first half of 2015, Catalonia attracted 1.959 billion euros, which represents a remarkable increase of 281.2 per cent in comparison to the same period of last year, when investment amounted to 515 million euros. Catalonia is therefore an increasingly attractive market for investors, as shown by the prestigious database fDi markets, which states that since 2011 Catalonia is the first region in mainland Europe to continuously attract investment.