Autarchy

Between 1939 and 1959 Franco tried to impose the so-called Autarchy, which tried to provide products that could only be produced in Spain. The State intervened in every economic matter:

• It created the INI (Instituto Nacional de Industria) in 1941 in order to control the national production. All the state industries were part of this institution.
• It also created the Instituto Nacional de Colonización in 1939 to have more agricultural lands in Spain.
• Some services were also nationalised, such as the railway system, which was grouped in RENFE.
• The State also controlled the prices and production of wheat.This policy had some consequences such as:

there was a decline in agricultural and industrial production, which caused economic stagnation. Ration Coupons had to be used in Spain until 1951 since there was shortage of basic products, which led to famine. Black market (straperlo) developed in order to get those basic products which could not be obtained with the coupons. Those good increased their price notably.