Looking ahead, how well these new pieces of legislation are able to mitigate the shortcomings in Spanish business dynamics will need to be assessed. (v) The challenge of fully capitalising on the roll-out of NGEU One of the main challenges that we face in the coming years is how to fully harness the possibilities offered by NGEU to drive a profound structural transformation of our economy. The short-term economic impact of the take-up of these funds in 2021 was smaller than that included in our macroeconomic projections. Nonetheless, a significant part of the expected economic growth for 2022 and for the next few years crucially hinges on the potential multiplier effect on activity of the use of the NGEU funds. In this respect, the rigorous selection of the investment projects to be funded under NGEU is one of the key drivers for maximising this impact and, therefore, the success of this mechanism in Spain. The available evidence suggests that the most successful public investment policies are generally those that supplement private investment (in the form of employee training or capital modernisation). Further, the efficacy of the projects should be assessed on an ongoing basis. Moreover, a recent paper by the Banco de España suggests preference should be given, among solvent, equally productive projects, to those of businesses that find it hardest to access external finance, since this would generate a larger multiplier effect.
8  For its part, year-on-year growth in the prices of services and non-energy processed goods, which include processed food, stood at 4.3% in May. 3  of employment.9 Among the factors behind this worse relative performance of the Spanish economy is its specialisation in tourism.10 This sector has been among the hardest hit by the pandemic and, moreover, the recovery in inbound tourism has been slower in Spain. Indeed, the gap with the euro area has tended to narrow in the most recent period, given the improvement in activity in hospitality and leisure. However, there was still a significant gap in trade, transportation and hospitality; construction; and professional and administrative activities; as well as in industry, in part due to the importance of the automotive industry. Conversely, in the sectors that have led the recovery, such as financial activities and public administration, GVA has outstripped its pre-pandemic level in Spain more than in the euro area. From the standpoint of demand components, the difference visà-vis the rest of the euro area reflects the lower buoyancy of services exports,11 residential investment12 and private consumption.13 The role of economic policy in the pandemic crisis Economic policies worldwide have played a key role to mitigate the impact of the health crisis on the income and financial position of households, firms and financial institutions. The monetary, fiscal and prudential authorities have also taken complementary measures, adapting them flexibly to the health situation and the economic effects of the pandemic.