Tourism surge powers business boom in the Canaries
The tourism boom is supercharging the creation of new businesses in the Canary Islands. This is reflected in data published yesterday by Spain’s National Statistics Institute (INE), which places the Archipelago as the country’s second fastest-growing autonomous community for the formation of new commercial companies during October, with a rise of 23.9%.
Island destinations lead national growth
Only the Balearic Islands surpassed this figure, with a total of 439 new companies created in October – compared to 440 in the Canaries – representing a 29% increase on the same month last year. Far from being isolated figures, the data paints a clear picture: Spain’s island archipelagos are leading business creation in the country, pointing to tourism as the primary engine of this growth. Both the Balearics and the Canaries, as established destinations, continue to record strong increases in visitor numbers, with records being broken consistently.
A historic October and a record-breaking year
For the Canary Islands, October marks a historic milestone, cementing its position as the best October for company creation since records began. This uptick coincides with the start of the high tourist season in the islands. The increase in visitors during these months generates greater demand for services, economic activity, and business opportunities, making tourism a direct driver of new enterprise.
The sector’s pull is confirmed as a decisive factor in this business surge. This idea gains even more relevance when looking at March – the month when the high season ends – which also saw 441 new companies created. This figure, higher than in other months, demonstrates that both business activity and company formation respond to the Islands’ tourist cycles.
The record is not confined to October. Analysing the full year reveals a very positive trend. In the first ten months of 2025, nearly 4,000 companies have already been created in the Canaries, a number that surpasses all records set in 2022 and 2023. This growth is occurring within a context of a powerful tourism upswing, which remains a fundamental activity in the Archipelago. Forecasts indicate that, with two months still to go, 2025 could close as another record year for company formation.
Sustained growth and sector analysis
The comparison with last year is clear: significantly fewer companies had been created by October 2024 than in the same period of 2025. In fact, the year-on-year increase for this October alone is 11%, a difference confirming that business activity continues to accelerate. Consequently, the Canaries have now strung together six consecutive months of year-on-year growth in business creation. A very similar evolution is observed in the Balearic Islands, also linked to the tourism boom and the strong demand for services it generates.
Looking at the country as a whole, the sectors pulling hardest on the creation of new commercial companies become clear. Real estate, financial, and insurance activities accounted for 19% of companies created in October, showing the growing weight of services associated with investment and economic management. Commerce, for its part, contributed another 15.9%, maintaining its position as one of the traditional pillars of the Spanish business fabric.
Investment trends and regional contrasts
Regarding the capital subscribed for the creation of new companies, the Canaries registered a notable increase, growing by around 32.9% compared to the previous year. The national trend, however, is different. Across Spain, 2,437 commercial companies increased their capital in October, a figure representing a slight decline of 0.2%, reflecting greater restraint in business investment outside the Archipelago.
In October, 98 companies closed in the Canary Islands. The majority, 85, did so voluntarily; four were dissolved due to mergers with other companies, and the remaining nine for other reasons. Furthermore, the number of companies that increased their capital also fell: 72 capital increases were registered in October, an 11.1% drop.
In contrast to the Canaries’ growth, Navarre, Extremadura, and Aragon saw declines of 41.82%, 9.02%, and 6.19%, respectively.
No post found!