Las sociedades con valores pignorables por el Banco de España y la Gran Depresión

Abstract

This article examines the physiognomy of the large non-financial Spanish companies during the crisis of 1929 using an original source, consisting of a compilation of accounting material from companies that had their values pledged by the Bank of Spain. The international literature teaches us that the crisis underpinned the flourishing of great companies; while the weakest ones disappeared, the modern companies survived. The large Spanish companies resembled and behaved similarly to European companies during the Depression. However, a duality may be observed in Spain between stable companies and other larger but more fragile ones. The obsolescence of some sectors, the volatility of international demand, the discretionary behaviour of public demand, and its own organisational performance, explain most of these differences.