In the fourth quarter of 2022, the service sector showed a notable surge, rising by 26.4 percent compared with the same period in 2021. The total reached 9,485.7 million euros, reflecting a robust expansion in exports that surpassed 18 percent year over year, according to the latest International Trade in Services Survey released by the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
Specifically, exports in Q4 2022 grew 18.5 percent year over year to 26,942.1 million euros, while imports climbed 14.6 percent to 17,456.4 million euros. This sets a clear tone for the quarter, underscoring the resilience of the service economy and its role in shaping the country’s external balance.
Several service categories stood out as primary drivers of export growth in the final quarter of 2022. Insurance and pensions led the charge with a 48 percent increase, followed by transport at 20.7 percent and commercial services at 19.1 percent. These sectors contributed significantly to the overall export performance, demonstrating the diversified strength of the services export mix.
Within the transportation sector, foreign sales reached 6,353.9 million euros, while total transport contributed to a broader export total of 9,864 million euros. Business services, in particular, rose by 20.7 percent year over year to support the stronger figure, and insurance and pensions advanced by 48 percent compared with the fourth quarter of 2021, totaling 1,642 million euros in exports.
Conversely, two sectors showed negative contributions to the export structure. There was a monetary-related drag and a smaller performance in certain structure-related aspects, resulting in a total of 774 million euros and an export figure that was 7.4 percent lower than the last quarter of 2021.
Contribution of imports
On the import side, services delivered the most positive contribution to annual import growth during Q4 2022. Business services led with 6,501.7 million euros of imports and an 13 percent increase; the transport sector followed with 4,405.3 million euros and an 18.8 percent rise year over year; and the insurance and pensions sector also posted notable growth with imports up 23.5 percent, reaching 1,350.5 million euros.
Industries with a more modest positive impact on import growth included maintenance and repair, where overseas purchases rose 6.6 percent and totaled 208.6 million euros for the period.
Geographically, exports aimed at Europe accounted for 16,810.3 million euros in the fourth quarter of 2022, while exports to the European Union reached 11,618.7 million euros. Among European destinations, euro area countries alone received 10,620.1 million euros.
When considering imports by origin, Europe accounted for 12,654.5 million euros, with 9,419.8 million euros attributed to EU member states and 8,557.8 million euros to eurozone economies.