Barcelona named 2026 European Capital of Local Retail
Catalan capital beats candidacies of Utrecht and Zaragoza
local business
European Commission orders Catalonia to cancel tax on large-sized shops
The European Commission has warned Spain that 6 Autonomous Communities, including Catalonia, should cancel their tax on large-sized shopping centres because it may represent indirect State aid benefiting smaller shops and therefore damaging free competition. The Catalan Minister for Business and Employment, Felip Puig, announced legal actions to defend this tax, which was validated by the Constitutional Court. Catalonia’s shopping model has a great presence of small and local shops, mostly run by families with a small number of employees. In order to protect this model and make it compatible with new shopping malls and large-sized international shops, in 2000 the Catalan Parliament created a tax on shops larger than 2,500 square metres. Currently, it is set at €17 per year per square metre. The revenue collected is devoted to actions promoting local retail.
Street sales of pirated goods to be regulated in some coastal towns
Councils of el Vendrell and Calafell negotiate with blanket street vendors in a move to regulate their activities and to avoid illicit competition with local businesses