The Balearics rank last among Spanish regions in terms of the growth in wealth of the islands' inhabitants. The 2017 report by the Balearic Economics and Social Council shows that income per head increased 1.2% last year. The national average was 2.8%.
The president of the council, a former Balearic finance minister Carles Manera, noted at the presentation of the report that this was not the first time that the Balearics had been down at the bottom among the regions. Consequently, he said, the model of economic growth in the Balearics needs to be "seriously rethought".
He did nevertheless offer some explanation. Economic growth is accompanied by what is comparatively high immigration. There is also a link to productivity, which was static between 2014 and 2017.
In the 1980s, Manera observed, the Balearics topped the list of regions for per capita income. Since then there has been a progressive descent. In 2017 the average income was 25,772 euros, which was still above the national average (24,999) but was only seventh on the list.
Manera considered the situation with tourism. While the Balearics are very much a region for "sun and beach", he detected a rise in low-season tourism. Over the 2016-2017 low season there was a 0.61% increase in tourist numbers compared with the previous. This contrasted with a national average of 0.16%.
