During his visit to the DENSO facilities in Barcelona, the President of the Catalan Government, Carles Puigdemont, highlighted Catalonia’s openness to trade and “to the world” and assured that the relationship between Catalonia and Japan “is a priority for our country".

 

After visiting the facilities of the company with the Minister of Business and Knowledge, Jordi Baiget, the President explained that Catalan trade accounts for 44% of the commercial relations between Japan and the Spanish state. Furthermore, over a third of Spain’s exporters to Japan are Catalan-based. “The relationship between Catalonia and Japan goes beyond the economic sphere, there are also strong ties in terms of culture, tourism and creativity”, he added.

 

According to the Head of the Executive, this strong economic relationship is due to Catalonia being “a place with a nose for business and this has given us a strong and diverse economy", as demonstrated by the fact that the territory “has shown greater economic diversification than many other areas of Europe, combining traditional industrial sectors with new business areas”.

 

In this regard, Puigdemont asserted that the Catalan people “play a major role in attracting foreign companies” as Catalonia is one of the top European regions in terms of foreign direct investment attractiveness. “It is the fourth region in Europe and the first one in Western Continental Europe in terms of foreign investment volume”, he specified.

 

On the occasion of the President’s visit, DENSO announced a €60 million investment over the next four years for factory “to maintain excellence and innovation” throughout its facilities. The multinational, which currently has a production area of 31,000 m2 in Sant Fruitós del Bages, is also supported by the Government’s competitiveness agency, Catalonia Trade & Investment.