Recent years have brought troubling news for rural areas. People and companies are moving away. As of January 1, 2021, the Valencia Community saw a 1.06% drop in active buildings within municipalities housing 1 to 500 businesses, according to the latest Statistical Directory of Autonomous Companies issued by the Generalitat. This marks a contraction in the smallest settlements, even as some pockets of growth appear elsewhere in the region.
The only categories that gained ground were those with 501 to 1,000 businesses, which rose by 1.16%, and those with 1,001 to 2,000 businesses, which grew by 3.72%. In contrast, populations exceeding 2,000 continued to shrink by 1.37%, with only eleven localities showing positive development after the pandemic year of 2020. El Campello led the list of increases with 4%, followed by Riba-roja at 2.39% and Xàbia at 1.78%. On the opposite end, Villena fell by 3.5%, Benidorm by 2.8%, and Sant Joan d’Alacant by 2.6%. Valencia itself also declined, though its decrease remained under 2%.
During the review period, the number of buildings hosting company activity fell by 0.46%, totaling 423,059. Among these, 374,225 traders operated in these spaces, a drop of 0.59% from the previous year. Since 2014, the Valencian Community has seen an overall 13.1% increase in the number of firms, marking a longer-term upward trajectory despite current fluctuations.
Additionally, as of January 1, 2021, 11,229 companies had active facilities within the autonomy but headquartered outside it. This represents 2.91% of the total and reflects a 3.87% year-over-year increase. These external traders outsnumber domestic traders in terms of employee count. Firms with facilities in other regions rose to 8,478, accounting for 2.27% of the total. The majority of these are services (6,551), followed by 1,076 in industry and 851 in construction. [citation: Valencian Economic and Territorial Statistics Office]
By province, trader counts declined in all three areas during the period: Castellón fell 0.39%, Valencia 0.71%, and Alicante 0.5%. Yet Alicante remains the only province to surpass its pre-2008 peak recorded during the Great Recession. Of all companies, 80.98% provided services, down 0.45%; construction accounted for 12.36%, down 0.52%; and industry represented 6.66%, down 2.43%. The overall pattern points to a gradual decline in industrial activity while service provision remains the dominant engine of the regional economy. [citation: Valencian Economic and Territorial Statistics Office]
Within the region, the tertiary sector accounts for the majority across all areas, consistently exceeding the combined share of other sectors. The top regions for industrial company concentration include El Comtat (17.27%), l’Alcoià (15.59%), Alcalatén (15.48%), Alto Vinalopó (15.32%), Vall d’Albaida (14.97%), and Orta Vinalopó (14.25%). Regions with the highest construction company presence are Rincón de Ademuz (30.57%), Alto Mijares (24.02%), and Marina Alta (20%). Finally, the count of firms receiving individual legal support fell by 0.33% to 202,774, with 37% of these led by women and 63% by men. [citation: Valencian Legal Support Registry]