There's no business like shoe business

THE Spanish footwear sector closed 2014 with a record number of exports totalling €2.64 billion.

According to a report prepared on foreign trade by the Federation of Spanish Footwear Industries (FICE), this represents an increase of 17 per cent compared to the previous year.

The Valencia Region, which boasts most of the footwear factories in Elche and Elda, exported the most pairs of shoes abroad according to the FICE. It said that these figures are the result of sales to 180 countries worldwide of 154.2 million pairs of shoes, 14 per cent more compared to 2013 figures.

The EU countries are still the main buyers of Spanish footwear, with a growth of 20 per cent, with France, Italy, Germany, the UK and Portugal topping the list. Europe receives 81 per cent of Spanish shoes followed by America with 9 per cent, Asia (7 per cent) Africa (2 per cent) and Oceania (1 per cent).

Exports to countries outside the EU increased by 8 percentage points, with the United States, Japan, China, South Korea and Hong Kong leading this classification. By contrast, sales to Russia fell largely due to the devaluation of the ruble and political tensions.