Immigrants are emerging as a powerful new force in the Spanish economy, boosting demand for new housing, which in turn is sustaining the country’s long construction boom, according to analyst reports.

“There is no risk of a property crash in Spain in the short or medium term thanks to new demand generated by immigrants,” says Angel Berges, a partner at Analistas Financieros Internacionales, a Madrid consultancy. Mr Berges estimates immigrants will buy some 170,000 homes in Spain this year – almost one quarter of total demand for new houses.