30 FOREIGN LANGUAGE NEWS 046BUSINESS

UK and eU

Brexit impact on the CanariesAccording to the multina-tional banking group BBVA, the Canary Islands will be among the Spanish areas most affected by Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union.Britain has a strong market presence in Spain’s tourism sector and the Canaries, along with the regions of Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Murcia, aragon, La rioja and navarra, will be those hardest hit by any changes that may lead to a drop in British visitors. the UK is also an important market for the Spanish car, chemical, and food industries, as well as the property sector.with regards to tourism, the holiday contracts for this year’s season were already in place so there hasn’t been an immedi-ate and noticeable impact, but the situation is very different for the property market.Last year, real estate sales rose by 12 per cent in the Canary Islands, according to the online property portal don Piso,

and sales for this year were expected to reach 15 per cent. with 21,000 properties sold and a market price increase of three to four per cent, things

were looking good, but there has since been a slump which has raised fears that Britain’s withdrawal from the eU will dampen the recovery.

Last year, Britain made up for 27 per cent of the share of non-Spanish property buyers on the Islands. Italians totalled 22 per cent and Germans, 17

per cent. However, there has already been a fall in British property buyers post-Brexit, with an unclear view on what will ultimately happen should

the UK government invoke arti-cle 50 and officially leave the eU, which they are expected to do. one of the main reasons for this is the uncertainty regard-ing agreements between the UK and eU member countries. will British pensioners living in europe still receive payments? will British residents still be eligible for public healthcare in those countries? Just two of the many questions surround-ing the Brexit issue.Santander Bank predicts possi-ble price fluctuations followed by a decline, especially with the scenario that Brits may have to sell their property in the Canary Islands to return to the UK and unsettle the slow recovery of the real estate market.accurate predictions are not possible at present as govern-mental trade deals and agree-ments have only just been started, if at all. However, this degree of uncertainty is placing a great deal of strain on finan-cial and domestic markets. n

Britain’s exit from the EU could seriously affect the Canarian property market

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