For a decade now, Spain’s performance has been remarkable. Growth has been robust, allowing real convergence at a fairly brisk pace, with the standard of living differential with the euro area average shrinking from 20% to less than 13% between 1995 and 2003. Fiscal consolidation, the fall in interest rates due to the introduction of the single currency, structural reforms pursued since the mid-1990s and a surge in immigration have created a virtuous circle of rapidly rising activity sustained by strong job creation. But...