OECD economic surveys : Spain 1998 / Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, issuing body.

Series:

OECD Economic Surveys: Spain

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Economic history.

Spain--Economic conditions.

Spain.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (212 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Paris, France : OECD Publishing, [1998]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This 1998 edition of OECD's periodic review of Spain's economy examines recent economic developments, policies and prospects. It includes special features on reforming the enterprise sector and entrepreneurship.

Contents:

Intro

Table of contents

Assessment and recommendations

I. Recent economic trends and prospects

Figure 1. CONTRIBUTIONS TO GDP GROWTH

Demand and output

Private consumption gathered steam though the saving rate remained high

Figure 2. COMPONENTS OF FINAL DOMESTIC DEMAND

Table 1. Outstanding financial assets and liabilities of households

Business investment remains strong, reflecting profits and capacity constraints

Table 2. Financial performances of non-financial firms

Figure 3. FIXED CAPITAL STOCK AND EMPLOYMENT

Figure 4. INVESTMENT IN SELECTED OECD COUNTRIES

The labour market

The employment response to the output recovery was strong

Figure 5. EMPLOYMENT

Wages and prices

Wage inertia did not impede a reduction in inflation

Figure 6. WAGE SETTLEMENTS, TOTAL WAGES AND THE CONSUMER PRICE INDEX

Table 3. Wages and labour costs

Figure 7. CONSUMER PRICES

Figure 8. DEGREE OF OPENNESS OF THE ECONOMY

The balance of payments

The current account surplus widened

Figure 9. EXTERNAL COMPETITIVENESS

Table 4. The current and capital accounts of the balance of payments

Box 1. EU transfers to Spain

Table 5. EU transfers to Spain

... net capital inflows continued and foreign exchange reserves rose steeply

Table 6. The financial account of the balance of payments

Prospects for 1998-99

Total domestic demand should strengthen further...

Figure 10. CONJUNCTURAL INDICATORS

... and produce some tensions on productive capacities and, in turn, wages and prices

Table 7. Short-term prospects

II. Macroeconomic policies

Monetary policy

Developments to mid-1997

Figure 11. INFLATION TARGETS AND INTEREST RATES

Figure 12. EXCHANGE RATE, FINANCIAL CONDITIONS AND ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE

Figure 13. REAL MONEY AND CREDIT

The end to monetary policy independence.

Fiscal policy

Table 8. General government adjustment efforts: an international comparison

1996: the first step towards the Maastricht target

Table 9. General government accounts

1997 budget: the final step to Maastricht

Box 2. New techniques to finance infrastructure investment

Looking forward: The 1998-2000 convergence programme

Table 10. Convergence programme 1998-2000

The 1998 budget: preparation for EMU

Figure 14. GENERAL GOVERNMENT BUDGET

Medium term fiscal adjustment

Figure 15. THE STRUCTURE OF THE GENERAL GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT: A COMPARISON WITH THE EU

III. Surveillance of structural policies

Labour market reform

Table 11. Implementing the OECD Jobs Strategy - an overview

Table 11. Implementing the OECD Jobs Strategy - an overview (cont.)

Figure 16. LABOUR MARKET CHARACTERISTICS IN SELECTED EU COUNTRIES

Pension reform: the implementation of the Toledo Pact

The new financing system for the regions

Table 12. Regional governments' expenditure and revenue

Figure 17. VARIABILITY OF GENERAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE

Reforming the health care system

Other product and factor deregulation measures

IV. Reforming the public enterprise sector

Key features of the public enterprise sector

Table 13. Institutional groupings of public enterprises at end -1996

Table 14. A comparison of public and private enterprise performance in 1995

The public enterprise sector is not large and is shrinking

Table 15. Main privatisations in Spain, 1986-1997

Table 16. The growth of regional public enterprises, 1990-1996

... but remains dominant in some industries providing critical inputs and public services

Figure 18. SHARE OF PUBLIC EMPLOYEES IN KEY SECTORS

Assistance to public enterprises has burdened the budget significantly.

Table 17. Central government assistance to public enterprises, 1987-1998

Table 17. Central government assistance to public enterprises, 1987-1998 (cont.)

Table 18. Total transfers received by non-financial public enterprises

These high transfers partly reflect high labour costs

Figure 19. WAGES AND EMPLOYMENT: A COMPARISON WITH THE PRIVATE SECTOR

Table 19. Main features of labour in public enterprises

A major change in policy towards public enterprises

The overall policy framework

Table 20. The modernisation programme's privatisation strategy

Reducing public enterprises' direct burden on the budget

Controlling wages and prices

Competition surveillance

Ownership structure

Figure 20. KEY ELEMENTS OF OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE FOR THE MAIN SPANISH ENTERPRISES

Reform in specific sectors

Network industries

Electricity sector

Figure 21. ENERGY PRICES IN AN INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Natural gas

Oil-refining and distribution

Telecommunications

Figure 22. LABOUR COSTS, PRODUCTIVITY AND PRICES IN THE TELECOMMUNICATION SECTOR

Box 3. Recent regulatory changes in telecommunication services

Table 21. Interconnection prices for basic telephone companies to the dominant operators

Potentially competitive sectors

Air transport

Enterprises the Government is using to implement public policies

Rail transport

Figure 23. LABOUR COSTS, PRODUCTIVITY AND PRICES IN RAIL TRANSPORT

Postal service

Declining industries

Coal

Shipyards

Steel and aluminium

Quantification of the effects of liberalisation

Table 22. Assumptions and effects of sectoral deregulation

Assessment

V. Entrepreneurship

The state of entrepreneurship in Spain

Small businesses and entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship and firm turnover rates

Regional dimensions of entrepreneurship.

Factors affecting entrepreneurship

Product markets and competition

Opening or closing a business

Finance

Figure 24. COST OF FINANCE AS A CONSTRAINT ON BUSINESS

Venture Capital

Table 23. Financial assets of institutional investors

Table 24. Venture capital in Europe and the United States, 1996

Taxation

Table 25. Average effective tax rates

Labour markets

Administrative and compliance burden

Figure 25. REGULATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE BURDENS

Figure 26. EFFICIENCY OF JUDICIAL SYSTEMS

Innovation

Table 26. Researchers by sector of employment

Table 27. Inventiveness coefficient

Figure 27. BARRIERS TO INNOVATION

Management skills and the role of the education system

Policies and programmes to promote entrepreneurship

Policies for SMEs

Entrepreneurial development programme

Concluding remarks

Notes

Glossary of acronyms

Bibliography

Annex I - Equilibrium in a pay-as-you-go pension system

Annex II - Calendar of main economic events

STATISTICAL ANNEX AND STRUCTURAL INDICATORS

Table A. Main aggregates of national accounts

Table B. Income and outlay transactions of households

Table C. Public sector accounts

Table C. Public sector accounts (cont.)

Table D. Labour market

Table E. Price and wage trends

Table F. Money and credit

Table G. Balance of payments

Table H. Foreign trade

Table H. Foreign trade (cont.)

Table I. Foreign assets and liabilities

Table J. Public sector

Table K. Production structure and performance indicators

BASIC STATISTICS: INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS

BASIC STATISTICS: INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS (cont'd).

BASIC STATISTICS: INTERNATIONAL COMPARISONS (cont'd)

BOXES

TABLES

Table 17. Central government assistance to public enterprises, 1987-1998

Table 24. Venture capital in Europe and the United States, 1996.

Table 25. Average effective tax rates.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on print version record.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

92-64-15139-7

OCLC:

1225554544