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Spain will be Europe's fastest growing major economy in 2026, according to IMF
Only the United States is projected to surpass Spain this year among advanced economies
Spain is expected to be the fastest growing large economy in Europe in 2026, according to new forecasts from the International Monetary Fund. The IMF has upgraded its growth prediction for Spain’s economy to 2.3%, placing it ahead of all other European countries and second only to the United States among advanced economies.
The revised forecast is an improvement of 0.3% compared to the IMF’s previous estimate published in October. It follows similar optimism from Spain’s Independent Authority for Fiscal Responsibility, which recently projected growth of 2.4% for the current year.
The IMF’s latest figures also suggest that Spain enjoyed a strong 2025, with economic growth estimated at 2.9%. That figure is well above the average for advanced economies, which grew by around 1.7%.
It also puts Spain comfortably ahead of the US at 2.1%, the eurozone at 1.4%, and neighbouring countries including France at 0.8%, Italy at 0.5% and Germany at just 0.2%. Final confirmation of Spain’s 2025 GDP figure is due from the National Statistics Institute on January 30.
Looking further ahead, the IMF predicts Spain’s economy will continue to expand in 2027, although at a more modest pace of 1.9%. Even so, that figure has also been revised upwards since October and would again leave Spain second only to the US, which is forecast to grow by 2%.
The gap between Spain and Europe’s largest economies is expected to narrow slightly next year. Germany is forecast to grow by 1.5%, France by 1.2%, while Italy is expected to remain close to stagnation for a fourth consecutive year with growth of just 0.7%.
If these forecasts prove accurate, Spain will have recorded seven straight years of economic growth above the eurozone and EU averages, something not seen since before the 2008 financial crisis.
Image: Freepik
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