The governor of the Bank of Spain, José Luis Escrivá, and CEOE Tenerife discussed the challenge of productivity this Thursday. The Annual Report 2025 from the institution places the gap with Europe at 25 years at the current pace.
The governor of the Bank of Spain, José Luis Escrivá, and the Executive Committee of CEOE Tenerife met this Thursday at the Real Casino de Tenerife to address one of the major structural challenges of the Spanish economy: productivity. The meeting, which included a broad representation of the Canary Islands business fabric, revolved around the conclusions of the Annual Report 2025 from the Bank of Spain, which warns that, at the current pace, the productivity gap with the European Union will not close until 2050.
A gap that is narrowing, but very slowly
As Escrivá explained, the Spanish economy maintains a differential growth compared to Europe, driven by factors such as falling energy prices, the dynamism of the labour market, and the efficiency of tourist capital. However, he warned that "this better performance should not make us forget the significant challenges we have ahead, such as the still open productivity gap between us and our main European partners."
The report indicates that, although the distance is narrowing, the pace is insufficient. "In recent years it has been narrowing, but at the current pace we would have to wait until 2050 to close it completely," the governor stated. To accelerate this process, Escrivá emphasised the need to "take advantage of the opportunities offered by technological transformation and artificial intelligence, and to act on our high density and regulatory fragmentation."
Small companies, scarce financing, and dense regulation
The president of CEOE Tenerife, Pedro Alfonso, opened the meeting with a reflection: "The figures describe the present, but it is the trends that build the future." Alfonso highlighted that the major economic debates are no longer limited to growth or inflation, but now involve addressing structural issues such as productivity, digitalisation, or international competitiveness.
Among the main problems identified by the Bank of Spain's report are the lack of size of Spanish companies, the limited diversification of funding sources, and excessively dense regulation that hinders competitiveness. "We are an open economy, connected to the outside world and particularly sensitive to everything that happens beyond our shores," Alfonso recalled, referring to the influence of financial markets and European institutions on investment and employment decisions in Spain.
The meeting also served to discuss the role of artificial intelligence and innovation as drivers of productivity. According to data from the Bank of Spain, the adoption of these technologies is still low in the Spanish business fabric, especially among SMEs, which represent the majority of the productive fabric. "We need to accelerate the incorporation of technologies such as artificial intelligence to strengthen the country's competitiveness," Escrivá pointed out.
Canary Islands, a laboratory of structural challenges
The choice of Tenerife for this debate was not coincidental. The Canary Islands, as an open economy dependent on the outside, suffers acutely from the productivity and financing problems that affect the whole of Spain. With this meeting, CEOE Tenerife aimed to place these debates "where they should be: on the agenda of those who create jobs, invest, and make decisions that shape the economic future of the Canary Islands every day," according to the organisation.
For the Canary Islands entrepreneurs, Escrivá's message was clear: productivity is not just a macroeconomic indicator, but an issue that directly affects the capacity to grow, innovate, and compete. The governor insisted that "we must take advantage of the opportunities offered by technological transformation" and called for more efficient regulation that facilitates business growth.
The next step, according to CEOE sources, will be to convey these conclusions to public administrations and continue working on concrete proposals to improve productivity. Meanwhile, the clock keeps ticking: 2050 is just 24 years away, and the margin to close the gap is shrinking.
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