Spain ranked as the fastest-growing major advanced economy for the third year running

Spain’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth will continue to be the strongest among the major eurozone economies this year and next. | Photo: Majorca Daily Bulletin reporter

Humphrey CarterPalma13/10/2026 12:34

“We are continuing,” the government’s economic chief emphasised on Tuesday in a message posted on the social media platform X, as reported by Europa Press. Spain’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth will continue to be the strongest among the major eurozone economies this year and next, according to the latest forecasts from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which predict growth of 2.5 per cent in 2026 and 1.8 per cent in 2027, with inflation rates of 3.7 per cent and 2.7 per cent, respectively.

In its ‘World Economic Outlook’ report, the institution headed by Kristalina Georgieva has revised its growth expectations for the Spanish economy this year upwards by four tenths of a percentage point to 2.5 per cent, following the 2.6 per cent recorded in 2025, whilst it has kept its growth forecast for 2027 unchanged at 1.8 per cent.

With this latest upward revision to its forecast for Spanish GDP growth in 2026, the IMF is moving closer to the Spanish Government’s own forecast; at the end of last June, the Government put its estimate for the current year at 2.6 per cent, although the international institution remains less optimistic about next year, as the Spanish Government expects growth of 2.2 per cent in 2027.

Sources at the Ministry of Economy have pointed out that Spain has seen one of the largest upward revisions by the IMF amongst the major advanced economies, “despite the turbulence in international markets and the rise in energy prices caused by the war in Iran”.

“The improvement is due to the strong performance of the Spanish economy in the second quarter and a smaller-than-expected impact from the war,” emphasised the department headed by Carlos Cuerpo. The Ministry of Economy has linked this to the anti-crisis shield deployed by the Government, which has cushioned “around half of the rise in prices and kept petrol and diesel prices below those in the eurozone”.

This week, the third package of measures, which extends protection for households and businesses until 31 December, is due to be submitted to Parliament for approval. As for prices, the IMF forecasts that the inflation rate in Spain will average 3.7 per cent in 2026, which is seven-tenths of a percentage point higher than in its outlook report last spring and exceeds the 3.1 per cent estimated for the eurozone as a whole; however, for the following year, it expects the rate of rise in Spain to moderate to 2.7 per cent, compared with an average of 2.8 per cent for the eurozone.

Meanwhile, the IMF forecasts that the unemployment rate will fall from 10 per cent in 2026 to 9.8 per cent, a level not seen since 2008. Furthermore, Spain will maintain a current account surplus of close to 3 per cent of GDP in 2026, meaning it is growing without accumulating external imbalances.