Who needs a government? Spain economy thriving without one, says Santander

Politicians, who needs ’em? Not Spain apparently, which is doing just fine right now without a government.

David Cameron, Jeremy Corbyn, Jeremy Hunt, Nigel Farage and all the others had better take note – Spain’s economy is actually thriving right now despite the country having been run without a government since December last year…

Leading Spanish bank Banco Santander has analysed recent economic data and found that the country is performing splendidly without any definitive leadership, although Santander’s CFO José Antonio García Cantera stopped just short of calling for the current political impasse to be extended.

“Hopefully we’re going to have a government after the second general election in June,” Cantera said, but added that in terms of Spain’s economic performance so far in 2016 – a year in which the country has been officially bereft of a Prime Minister – there has been no discernably negative impact on GDP.

In fact, boosted by the strengthening real estate sector, the economy is actually performing ahead of expectations. “In our business, new mortgage production is up 25%, business lending is up 13%, year-on-year,” the CFO told Bloomberg. “That tells you that the Spanish economy really is thriving.”

Other metrics serve to back up these statistics. Sales in Spain’s retail sector are up 4.4% for the year, which hints strongly at returned consumer confidence on the high street. Mortgage lending also reached €5 billion in February, the highest it has been for more than six years, which again points to the undeniable link between a strong property market and a growing economy.

As for the politicians, Spaniards go to the polls once again on June 26 to cast their votes in the hope that one party earns enough seats to either rule outright or form a favourable coalition.

But if the first five months of the year are any indication, Spain may not need the outcome to be as clear-cut as many may have first hoped – it seems that the country is rather adept at running itself.