The Diplomat
The State Secretary for Trade, Xiana Méndez, presented on Wednesday at the Spanish Chamber of Commerce the axes of the Action Plan for the Internationalization of the Spanish Economy 2021-2022 that the Government expects to approve before the end of March.
The aim of the plan is to boost the foreign sector as a pillar of growth and employment through the diversification of exports, digitalization and the implementation of companies in strategic sectors.
This was pointed out by Méndez in his speech at the Internationalization Commission of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce chaired by Mapfre’s general manager of External Relations and Communication, Eva Piera.
Méndez told the members of the Commission that the priority objectives will be to ensure that the foreign sector is configured as a “pillar of growth and employment” through the diversification of exports and the establishment of companies in strategic sectors and destinations. It is also intended to enhance the resilience of the foreign sector, providing it with sufficient instruments and making it more digital and sustainable”.
At the meeting, which focused on the analysis of international trade trends in the current context of the Covid-19 pandemic, Méndez expressed his confidence that foreign trade will once again be the “engine for the recovery of growth” of the Spanish economy.
He also pointed out the serious consequences of the coronavirus, which has had an impact on all areas of the economy and also on the foreign sector, although he assured that the latest figures available show that after the slump in exports in the first months of 2020, positive figures have already been passed.
In fact, he highlighted that 2019 levels have been recovered, both in current and future orders and staff hiring, according to data from the end of March of the Synthetic Indicator of Export Activity (ISAE) for the fourth quarter of 2020.
After recognizing that the current situation is marked by uncertainty, he listed against this the four elements that will mark the agenda of his Secretariat, which pass through the future of trade relations with the United Kingdom, more favorable after the Free Trade agreement reached with that country at the end of 2020, and China, with whom the agreement closed by the European Union also in the last days of 2020 opens “new opportunities” for access to that market.
The meeting of the Internationalization Commission of the Spanish Chamber was chaired, for the first time, by Eva Piera, General Manager of External Relations and Communication of Mapfre, who pointed out the opportunity for the foreign sector to act as a lever for recovery.
