Lleida Leads Economic Growth in Catalonia with a 3.5% Increase in 2025

The gross value added of the province of Lleida grew by 3.5% in 2025, the largest increase in Catalonia, driven by the primary sector (+13.5%) and construction (+5.8%), according to the BBVA Economic Yearbook.

The BBVA Economic Yearbook 2025, prepared by Josep Oliver, emeritus professor of Applied Economics at UAB, and presented alongside the territorial director of BBVA in Catalonia, José Ballester, places Lleida at the forefront of Catalan growth. The report, advanced by moncloa.com, details that the gross value added (GVA) of the province increased by 3.5% during the past year, ahead of Barcelona (3.1%), Girona (2.8%), and Tarragona (2%).

The dynamism of Lleida is supported by two key sectors. The primary sector raised its added value by 13.5%, while construction increased by 5.8%. These figures contrast with the more moderate growth in other areas: the Terres de l'Ebre grew by 1.3% and the Camp de Tarragona by 2.2%, weighed down by the chemical and energy industries, which are more exposed to international cycles.

The pattern of economic recovery in Catalonia has changed. For decades, crises were overcome first along the AP-7 corridor and then spread to the rest. Now, several inland counties are surpassing the Catalan average. The Pla de Lleida advanced by 3.7%, ahead of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (3.1%) and the counties of Girona (2.9%). Other areas such as Pla de l'Estany, Garrotxa, Osona, and Bages also gained momentum.

Across Catalonia, GVA grew by 3% and GDP by 2.7%. The services sector, which accounts for nearly three-quarters of the activity, maintained a solid pace with an additional 3.1%. The Catalan primary sector advanced by 9.4% thanks to agricultural recovery, while industry remained at 1.5%, affected by international uncertainty.

Since 2019, productive private services (finance, telecommunications, transport, research) have increased their GVA by 25.6%. Personal services (hospitality, commerce, consumption, and tourism) grew by 12.4%, and collective services (administration, education, and healthcare) by 10.1%.

Catalonia is growing, but it no longer grows only where it always has: dynamism has settled in the counties that have been waiting for years.

However, Lleida's leadership rests on fragile foundations. The 13.5% of the primary sector is an excellent yet volatile figure, as it depends on the harvest, the price of fruit, and especially, the available water. The counties of Lleida are well aware of drought warnings and irrigation limitations in Segrià and Urgell, with the Catalan Water Agency acting as the gatekeeper. A good harvest year produces a jump of 13.5%; a bad year undoes it. Construction, with 5.8%, is also not a driver that should be confused with productivity.

The comparison between territories allows for a second reading. The Terres de l'Ebre and Camp de Tarragona grow less because their GDP depends on the chemical industry, energy, and large complexes that respond to international cycles, not to the agricultural campaign. In contrast, counties like Osona or Bages, with a more diversified industrial fabric and productive services, have better capitalised on the upturn.

Josep Oliver hopes that the trend will consolidate and sets two conditions: that productivity gains weight in the Catalan economic debate and that the manufacturing industry recovers the momentum lost due to last year's geopolitical uncertainty. Recovering factories and not just services is what separates a good year from a change in model.

The regional accounting data published by IDESCAT will allow us to check in the coming quarters whether the shift inland is temporary or structural. The next edition of the Yearbook, which BBVA presents every autumn, will serve as a thermometer. In the meantime, it is worth retaining a simple idea: the Catalan engine now has more cylinders, and some are inland.