4th Forum of foreign capital companies in Castilla-La Mancha

Cabanillas del Campo (Guadalajara), 9 May, 2019, 40% of foreign capital companies with operations in Castilla-La Mancha expect to increase their workforce and and turnover in 2019, according to information presented at the 4th Forum of Foreign Capital Companies in Castilla-La Mancha, celebrated in Cabanillas del Campo (Guadalajara).

With the participation of around 70 representatives from institutions, businesses, business associations, and financial institutions, this yearly event has become one of the most important for valuing the potential of the region as a destination for investment, as well as for becoming aware of business opportunities and benefits which the region offers to foreign companies.

In fact, since 2015, foreign direct investment has increased six-fold in Castilla-La Mancha, making it one of the top autonomous communities in terms of the attraction of foreign investment. A total of 45 foreign-investment projects have chosen Castilla-La Mancha since 2015 – eleven of them in the province of Guadalajara – including by companies such as Amazon, Ball Corporation, Michelin, Puy du Fou and Luis Simoes.

As mentioned by Patricia Franco, Councillor of Economics, Business and Employment in Castilla-La Mancha, the promotion of the establishment of foreign companies in the region is a priority for the government, as well as an opportunity for businesses, as the region is a national leader in several areas: it is the region with the highest levels of business confidence in all of Spain – 11 points above the national average; it has the highest start-up rate in Spain; and it was the region which the highest growth of jobs, specifically targeting growth of youth employment.

A good example of the opportunities offered by the region is municipality of Cabanillas del Campo where the event was held. Its mayor, José García, reminded attendees that, thanks to industrial expansion, Cabanillas is the municipality with the lowest unemployment rate – around 10% – in all of Castilla-La Mancha. He also highlighted the importance of a new project promoting two industrial parks, which would increase the industrial surface area available in the municipality by 50%.

Jesús Rubiera, Adjunct Director of Invest in Spain, underscored the collaboration of the Government of Castilla-La Mancha in the promotion of more than 160 investment opportunities, taking advantage of Spain’s current privileged situation with respect to foreign direct investment (FDI) and of the economic prosperity of Castilla-La Mancha, the 7th autonomous community with respect to plant and equipment created by foreign investment.

This climate of confidence is one of the reasons more than 40% of foreign companies located in the region have predicted increases in their workforce and turnover this year, according to the results from the 4th Barometer of Business Climate and Foreign Investment in Castilla-La Mancha. The Barometer was presented by Francisco Javier Rosell, General Director of Business, Competition, and Internationalization.

The Barometer includes other interesting statistics confirming the investment opportunities in the region:

• 52% of respondents increased their workforce in Castilla-La Mancha in 2018 and more than 40% predict an increase in workforce and turnover in 2019.
• Almost half of foreign companies in the region increased their turnover and order book in 2019.
• One third have increased their investments in R & D.
• 60% of respondents have investment projects in the region.
• Positive factors reported by investors included business climate, security, real estate costs, and the technical knowledge and continuing education of workers.

The forum also included the participation of Multinacionales por Marca España, which presented the results of its study titled “Innovating the future”, which has identified Spain as the third country in the world – and first in Europe – in the rollout of fibre optic, and which celebrates the opportunities emerging from the 4.0 industry.

The regional government is betting on the outsourcing of ICT, along with other sectors, since the highly-qualified and competitive workforce of Castilla-La Mancha makes it an excellent location for software development, data storage, and BPO services.

The fourth edition of the Forum of Foreign Capital Companies in Castilla-La Mancha ended with a roundtable discussion by foreign businesses who shared their success stories: Eiffage Energía – the Spanish subsidiary of the large construction and energy company is the most important of the group in the renewable energy market – the Portuguese logistic company Luis Simoes, the technological giant Huawei, and the multinational container company Ball Corporation.