According to a report by Ouhua News in Spain, Chinese people in Spain are the most enterprising individuals who know how to seek development during a crisis. Since the outbreak of the crisis in 2008, the number of newly opened Chinese-owned catering businesses and small shops has doubled.
Data from the National Federation of Associations of Self-Employed Workers (RETA) in Spain indicates that as of September, the number of Chinese self-employed business owners in the Madrid region reached 41,858, an increase of 90.4% compared to 2008, the year the crisis officially began. Among all foreign business owner groups, Chinese self-employed owners rank fifth in number and represent the immigrant group with the highest growth in business owners since the onset of the crisis.
Relatively speaking, more than five years into the crisis, the total number of self-employed (Autónomo) business owners in Spain stands at 3,035,490, a contraction of 11% over the five-year crisis period, while the number of Chinese self-employed owners has increased year by year. The National Federation of Associations of Self-Employed Workers stated that 70% of Chinese business owners operate in the commercial sector, primarily focusing on clothing stores, "one-euro" variety stores, and grocery stores.
Among foreign immigrant business owners, in contrast to the continuous increase in Chinese owners, the number of business owners from the large Romanian immigrant group has decreased significantly, falling from nearly 50,000 before the crisis to fewer than 25,000 today. The Federation of Associations of Self-Employed Workers stated that this could be interpreted as Romanian owners being one of the groups most severely punished by the crisis, with a decline of nearly 50%. Another large immigrant group, Moroccans, also suffered from the crisis, with the number of business owners decreasing by 8.6%. However, immigrants from the Dominican Republic also saw the highest growth in business owners since the crisis, with an increase of 60%, totaling 1,835 self-employed owners; however, this group accounts for a very small share of the total, making its significance less pronounced.