ISSUE NO. 1430
29 NOVEMBER - 5 DECEMBER 2012
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM
Islands’ €10 billion tourism bonanza By Frank Anderson TOURISTS have spent almost €10 billion in the Balearics this year, an increase of 6.4 per cent. Official figures for January to October show that more than €9.91 billion was spent by the 10.2 million tourists. Figures for the month of October are even more impressive, with a 9.4 per cent increase in revenue to €811 million, despite a pronounced drop in the
ON THE UP: Tourists spent more cash this year. number of visitors from the mainland. The average expenditure per tourist while here was €968, an increase of 3 per cent.
Again, the figures for October were also impressive, with an 8 per cent increase of spending per stay to €940. The islands hosted more
than 860,000 tourists last month, which was one-fifth of all arrivals to Spain. But figures for October were nowhere near as positive for the islands’ small and medium firms. They reported a drop in sales of 7.6 per cent, which while below the national average of 8.4 per cent, is still substantial. Small firms have complained that the effects of the tourist bonanza are not trickling down to them as all-inclusive packages mean many visitors don’t have to eat out, and therefore visit commercial areas less.
Repeat offender caught again A TEENAGE criminal has been arrested for the 15th time this year. Police in Manacor had been looking for the 19-year-old Spaniard in connection with two violent robberies and drugs charges. He is notorious in the Manacor area for his criminal activity and has previously been detained on charges of intimidation, mugging, forced burglary
and small-scale drug dealing. Meanwhile, also in Manacor, a 24-yearold Moroccan man has been remanded in jail on a charge of sexual assault on a middle-aged woman and two charges of violent robbery. It is alleged he chased the woman on the street and touched parts of her body before throwing her to the ground and stealing her mobile.
FRONT EXTRA
Legal queues MASSIVE queues formed outside courthouses throughout the islands as residents sought to avoid the new charges for civil actions, in which plaintiffs have to pay up to €1,200 irrespective of the outcome of the case.
Driver jailed A MAN who nearly ran over a Guardia Civil officer to avoid a drinkdrive check-point, drove through a string of red lights and careered on to the wrong side of the road in Binissalem during a high-speed chase has been jailed for eight months.
Refuge found A CIVIL WAR refuge has been uncovered by workmen in Santa Eularia in Ibiza. The 15-metre long bunker is located under the Placa d’Espanya and has been covered up for six decades.
DIY jobs UP TO 150 jobs will be created by the opening of the Bauhaus DIY goods store next summer. The centre will be located at Marratxí and a recruitment campaign is already under way.