11/17/09

Spain has EU’s fifth highest growth in private investment in R&D

Spanish companies increased their investments in research and development (R&D) by 9.4% in 2008, representing the fifth largest increase in the main investing countries of the European Union (EU), according to a study by the European Commission.

The increase in private investments by companies headquartered in the EU was reduced slightly in 2008, down to 8.1% from the 8.8% for 2007. However, for the second consecutive year, it once again exceeded the growth rate for the United States, which increased by 5.7% and Japan, growing by 4.4%.

Among EU companies, the ones with investment rates above the European average were Italian (20.4%), Swedish (17.4%), Danish (16.4%), British (11.3%), Spanish (9.4%) and German, which had the strongest investment in all of Europe, breaking the trend from the past five years and increasing its financing by 8.9%.