The Valencian Community is located on the eastern coast of the Iberian Penninsula along the Mediterranean, and comprises of three provinces, Alicante, Valencia and Castellón. On its northern borders are Catalonia and Aragon, to the west is Castilla La Mancha and to the south is Murcia. Catalan and Spanish are the two official languages of the region.

The region is famous for its orange groves, temperate climate and its 500km of coastline with their long, clean sandy beaches. There has been a strong international influence on the region, the area having been settled by the Romans, Greeks and Phoenicians and later, centuries of Moorish presence, leaving a combination of Mediterranean and Moorish architecture, style and traditions across the Community. The Community has a surface area of 23,300 square kilometres, the equivalent of 4.6 per cent of the total surface area of Spain, however the region's population of 4.2 million accounts for approximately 10 per cent of the Spanish total, suggesting a densely populated area with several large settlements.

Valencia is the third largest city in Spain after Madrid and Barcelona and is the capital of the region. Castellón is the northernmost province of the Community of Vallencia. Castellón de la Plana is the capital of the province with a population of approximately 140,000. La Costa Azahar (Orange-blossom Coast) stretches to the North of Valencia along the coastline of the Castellón province. In contrast to the greenery of its many orange groves running along the coast, much of the region is mountainous and rugged. The most popular tourist areas in the region are Benicarlo, Vinaroz, Peñsicola, Alcoceber, Oropesa and Benicasim. Peñsicola is a village located on a high promontary dominated by a medieval castle. The houses and streets of the town are all contained within the walls of the castle.

Alicante is the capital of Alicante province and is the second largest city of the Community of Valencia. The city is dominated by the Moorish castle of Santa Barbara, which offers impressive views across the entire area. Alicante province runs around the bay of the Costa Blanca, one of the most popular and famous of the Spanish tourist areas with excellent tourist facilities and long, clean sandy beaches. Among the most important towns on the Costa Blanca, apart from Alicante are Denia, Calpe and of course Benidorm with its outstanding hotel infrastructure and exciting nightlife. There are clearly defined areas within the province, Upper Marina with the towns of Jávea, Teulada, Benitachell and Calpe. Lower Marina includes Benidorm, Altea and Villajoyosa and also the foothills of Aitana Sierra.

The central area of the province also stretches inland towards the industrial area including the towns of Elche, Aspe, Movela and Elda. The maritime towns of Guardamar, Torrevieja and Orihuela make up the southern area of the province with their extensive plains of market gardens pushing inland away from the coast. The mountain area includes the foothills of Aitana, Mariola and Carrasqueta Sierras.

Economy:
According to figures released by the Savings Banks Foundation (FUNCAS) the Community of Valencia contributes to just over 10 per cent of the national GDP, the third highest contribution in the country. The service industry accounts for 63 per cent of the region's total GDP and 59 per cent of the region's employment, followed by Industry, accounting for approximately 24 per cent of the local GDP, construction contributes 10 per cent and lastly Agriculture and Fishing 3 per cent. Although agriculture only contributes 3 per cent of the total GDP of the area, it is an extremely competitive sector and exports the majority of its produce, particularly citrus fruit. The economy in Valencia is growing faster than the Spanish economy with the GDP of the area increasing by 4.07 per cent during 2000/2001 compared to Spain as a whole growing at 3.12 per cent during the same period. The income of the region per capita in 2001 was also higher than the Spanish average of 15,663.40 euros, with an income of 15,886 euros.

The GDP and income per capita both show that the Community of Valencia is a relatively prosperous region offering excellent economic opportunities. It has already proved to be a popular area for new business projects. Foreign investment totalled approximately 2,019 million euros in 2001, a 40 per cent increase on the previous year. It has a vital location within Europe, offering access to sea, air and land transport links thus opening major markets not only in Europe but also Latin America and North Africa. According to the Valencian Statistics Institute, the region is the second largest exporter in Spain, and has the highest trade surplus.

The Valencian Region offers not only traditional industries such as textile and footwear production, wood and furniture but also the manufacturing of machinery, iron and steel, plastic and petrochemicals. There are also a large number of small and medium sized businesses that supply components and services to multinationals.

The service sector, in particular tourism in the coastal areas, generates the most income in the region. Costa Blanca is particularly popular with tourists, and as a consequence, property developers and there are large property developments all across this area. According to Communidad Valenciana, the tourist bureau of the region, over 19 million tourists visit the area every year and 13 per cent of Spain's foreign national residents live in Valencia.

The majority of the manufacturing industries are grouped together in different areas, forming independent industrial centres. The region's ceramic industry is concentrated in the province of Castellón responsible for approximately 90 per cent of the ceramic floor and wall tiles manufactured in Spain. The toy and footwear industries are all located in the province of Alicante and the metal manufacturers are concentrated in the towns around Valencia.

Over two hundred and sixty multinational companies have located factories and distribution centres in the region and together with the traditional local industries, the Community has become one of Spain's fastest growing economies.

Amongst the latest investments to come to the region is the Ford car-plant in Almussafes, which will manufacture 4 different models of vehicle. The plant has also been chosen to produce the new Mazda for Europe. Hirotec of Hirotec Worldwide, a global union of companies excelling in automotive closures has established a plant in the industrial park of Almussafes, next to the Ford plant to supply parts for the new Mazda model. Almussafes has proved to be the most productive plant in Spain and the fifth most productive in Europe.

The Japanese chemical multinational UBE Corporation has designated Proquimed, the Castellón subsidiary, as its European headquarters. The UBE group is set to invest 190 million euros in the region between 2000/2004, the largest investment by a Japanese company in Spain in recent years, to build premises to manufacture laurel lactam, Nylon 12, Nylon 6 and copolymers.

Danone opened new premises in Aldaya in 2001 and Graham Packaging, an American manufacturer of plastic containers for the branded food and beverage industry opened new premises in 2002 next to Danone. British Petroleum is expanding its existing plant in Castellón with an investment of 200 million euros.

The Valencian Worldwide Investment and Foreign Trade Agency (IVEX) offers a wide range of services to assist the foreign investor including providing background information on the Valencian Region, local industry, labour market, transport links, education, culture and tourism. IVEX also offers advice on the legal aspects of start-up operations, including taking on staff and the tax system and also offering support and management. IVEX also provides information on the wide range of industrial land available in the area and can assist with site selection. The organisation also offers a support service for technical, administrative and financial paperwork and helps make contact with the authorities, institutions and the business community. They will help with the technical development of the project including obtaining licenses and permissions, environmental legislation and negotiating with the major utilities.

Workforce:
According to FUNCAS, in a population of almost 4.2 million approximately 1.65 million are currently in active employment, 192,000 are unemployed and 86,994 are foreign residents.

According to the office of the Valencian Finance Councilor, full employment has been achieved in some areas of the Valencian Community. Castellon Province, for example, has an unemployment rate of below 5 per cent and on the whole in the Valencian Community, the unemployment averages 7.3 per cent. Recent figures showed that the Valencian Community led the whole of Spain with a drop in unemployment of around 17.6 per cent.

Infrastructure:
The A-7 "Mediterranean Motorway" crosses the region from north to south following the Spanish Mediterranean coast and offers links to many of the major coastal towns and cities. The Valencia-Madrid and Alicante-Madrid toll free motorways link the area to the centre of Spain. The Somport motorway is currently under construction and will link central and western France with the region. The largest international road transport fleet in Spain is located in the Valencian Region and is able to take advantage of the convenient sea transportation and modern road systems available providing connections to Europe and North Africa.

The five ports of the Community of Valencia are part of the Spanish National Network and are jointly run by the central and regional governments but also receive private funding. The ports of Alicante, Valencia, Castellón, Gandia and Sagunto not only handle all the agricultural and industrial products shipped from the Valencian Region but also a large part of Central Spain. The ports also handle all the fuel and raw materials imported into the region. According to the Port Authority the amount of traffic in tonnes travelling through the 3 major ports has grown considerably between 2000 and 2001 although the total number of ships and the total number of passengers have remained constant. The amount of traffic in tonnes, travelling from the Port of Valencia increased by 10.7 per cent between 2000 and 2001, in Castellon the traffic increased by 4.1 per cent and in Alicante increased by 7.6 per cent. The Port of Valencia handles 20 per cent of Spanish exports and is the largest container port in Spain. The scheduled lines that operate out of Valencia call over the world, offering access to 300 international ports with regular services to Barcelona, the Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, France and North Africa.

There are two international airports in the Valencian Region, Valencia- Manises and Alicante-El Altet. Alicante is one of the major international charter flight airports, and both airports offer scheduled flights to destinations throughout Spain and the major European airports. Easyjet offers a regular service to Alicante from the UK, using the East Midlands, Bristol, Liverpool, London Stanstead and Gatwick airports. The province of Castellón does not have an international airport but the motorway has made access to the province from Manises Airport in Valencia much quicker and more convenient. However, it does have an Aeroclub which, although mainly used for club purposes, can also cater for light passenger aircraft. Plans are underway to build a third airport at Castellón. 9 million passengers arrive annually to the airports in Valencia and Alicante and according to the Ministry of Public Works, during 2000/2001 the number of passengers flying into Valencia increased by 2 per cent and those flying to Alicante rose by 8 per cent.

Train lines cross the whole region and there are stations at all coastal regions. The 'Euromed' trains run along the whole of the Mediterranean coast to Alicante and the 'Alaris' trains link the region to Madrid. The trains can reach maximum speeds of over 200km per hour. Construction is due to begin shortly on a high speed rail link between Valencia and Madrid. Regional train and metropolitan underground networks are also available and are run by the Valencian Regional Government.

Quality of life:
In a recent study by The Economist the quality of life in Spain ranked third in the world in terms of social, political, cultural and economic parameters.

The Valencian Region is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe and has an excellent tourist infrastructure. The region boasts 36 yacht clubs, 21 golf courses, museums, theatres, sporting facilities and wonderful food. The weather is temperate and the sun shines for approximately 80 per cent of the year. The average temperatures are 10ºC in the winter and 24ºC in the summer with around 2,686 hours of sun every year.

The health service in the region is modern and highly developed with 2,885 health centres and 60 hospitals across the three provinces.

Business Costs:
Business costs in Spain are among the lowest in Europe. When looking at comparisons of wage bills offered by the World Competitiveness Yearbook 2001 the average salaries in Spain are approximately half those in the U.K. The US Bureau of Labour Statistics assessed the average labour costs per hour in the Spanish Manufacturing Industry at $10.85 (10.70 euros), compared to $12.50 (12.33 euros) in Ireland, $15.88 (15.67 euros) in the UK, $21.11 (20.83 euros) in Belgium and $24.01 (23.69 euros) in Germany.

Real estate prices are particularly competitive compared to other European countries for both residential and office space. In the UK a 3 bedroom flat costs an average of almost 2,484 euros (£1,600) per month and in Spain the cost for an equivalent property is approximately 690 euros (£445).