Business sales have accumulated two negative quarters with a drop of 1.1% in the third

The total sales of the country's companies – both large, small and medium-sized – fell by 1.1% quarterly during the summer, thus chaining two consecutive negative quarters after the 0.9% decline they experienced from April to June, according to data published this Friday by the Tax Agency.

Spanish companies did poorly both in their sales within the country (which fell by 0.8% quarterly, worsening their decline) and in exports to other countries (which fell by 1.9% compared to the previous quarter, moderating their fall, since in the previous one they had sunk 3.5%).

Compared to data from a year ago, companies sold 0.5% more in the third quarter than in the same period of 2022, thanks to the boost in domestic consumption – 1.2% more were sold within the country. and despite the fact that sales to other countries were 2.1% lower than those of the same period in 2022 due to the cooling of international demand for goods.

National demand holds up, although it is heterogeneous. While sales for consumption showed a slight decline (-0.1%), due to the incipient impact of persistent inflation and the rise in interest rates on the disposable income of households; Capital sales, which include machinery, tools, buildings, computers and other equipment used in production, rose 10.1% quarterly, also driven by investment derived from the deployment of European Next Generation funds. Within the latter, sales of equipment and software maintained a notable intensity (14.1%), while those of construction almost doubled their growth, up to 6.7%.

For its part, the decline in sales abroad was mainly due to lower demand from third countries (especially Asian), since sales to the EU rose by 0.9%, although much less than in the previous quarter. , when they had risen 4%, due to the slowdown in growth in the different member states.

Although business sales remain in positive territory, as there is growth compared to a year ago, there is a slowdown in year-on-year terms compared to the previous quarters, which the Tax Agency explains by “the slight moderation in the growth of domestic sales and the contraction of exports”.

In the three quarters of the year as a whole, total sales grew by 2%, an increase that could be moderated if the fourth quarter is also negative for the evolution of business turnover.