Articles by The Corner

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The Corner
The Corner has a team of on-the-ground reporters in capital cities ranging from New York to Beijing. Their stories are edited by the teams at the Spanish magazine Consejeros (for members of companies’ boards of directors) and at the stock market news site Consenso Del Mercado (market consensus). They have worked in economics and communication for over 25 years.
espana servicios hosteleria

Spanish Social Security system gains 229,742 employed persons up to middle of May, closing in on 21.8 million mark

CdM | Social Security enrolment has increased by 229,742 employed persons in the first half of May, to 21,783,878 contributors in the daily series of affiliates, a new record figure, according to data published on Tuesday by the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration. In the seasonally adjusted series, 21,557,126 affiliates have been reached in the first fortnight of May, thanks to the increase of 45,531 affiliates in the…


Puig

Puig Brands claims 31% loss of value since IPO due to evolution of sector, not business operations

Link Securities | Marc Puig, president and CEO of Puig Brands, attributed the 31% loss of its share price since its IPO on 3 May 2024 to market doubts about the evolution of the sector, and not to the operation of the business, Expansión reports today. He believes this is due to the market’s assumption that the sector will be affected by increased uncertainty, something that was not foreseen last…


escriva

Bank of Spain no longer sees any problem with Spanish pension system

A significant shift – highlighted by several Spanish media outlets – in the view that the Bank of Spain has held until now regarding the scale of the challenges facing the Spanish economy. In the first report with former minister José Luis Escrivá as governor of the Bank, the entity’s constant concerns about the sustainability of the pension system have disappeared. As the newspaper El Mundo explains, “After the warning…


china central bank

China’s central bank cuts one-year rate to 3% and five-year to 3.50%

Bankinter | China’s central bank (PBoC) lowers the one-year interest rate to 3% from 3.10% previously. The 5-year rate is cut to 3.50% from 3.60%. Bankinter analysis team’s view: The central bank is once again taking action, with the aim of reactivating the economy. On 7 May it cut the 7-day repo rate to 1.40% from 1.50% and the reserve requirement for banks to 9.0% from 9.5%. It also announced…


indra edificio 2

Indra to carry out integral modernisation of ground-to-air communications system for Brazilian Air Force

Link Securities | Indra (IDR) has been selected by the Brazilian Air Force to carry out the integral modernisation of the country’s ground-to-air communications system, in a contract awarded by the Department of Airspace Control (DECEA) through the Commission for the Implementation of the Airspace Control System (CISCEA), according to the digital portal Bolsamania.com. The project contemplates the supply of more than 800 state-of-the-art radios that will optimise voice and…


IPC varios Eurozona.

Eurozone final CPI confirms 2.2% in April and core rate 2.7% due to 4% rebound in services

CdM| The year-on-year inflation rate in the Eurozone remained stable in April at 2.2%, while in the European Union as a whole the rate moderated by one tenth of a percentage point compared to March, to 2.4% year-on-year, according to the second reading published on Monday by Eurostat and reported by Europa Press. According to data from the statistical office for the Eurozone, in April the price of energy recorded…


Spanish economy general

Spain to grow 2.6% in 2025 after public debt (103.5% of GDP) increases 3.3%

The Bank of Spain (BoE) published yesterday that the debt of all public administrations in Spain rose in March to €1.667 trillion. Compared to February, Spanish public debt grew by 1.3%, which represents an increase of €21.263 billion. In the last 12 months, Spanish public debt has grown in absolute terms by 3.3%, equivalent to €52.729 billion. This figure contrasts with the 2.6% growth expected for Spanish GDP by the…


Alemania Exportaciones

Eurozone posts €62-billion suplus in 1Q25 compared to €55 billion in 1Q24, exports and imports both up

Link Securities | Eurostat reports that, according to its first estimate of the data, the Eurozone’s trade surplus stood at €36.8 billion in March compared to €22.8 billion in March 2024. In March, exports of goods from the Eurozone to the rest of the world amounted to €279.8 billion, an increase of 13.6% year-on-year. On the other hand, imports from the rest of the world amounted to €243.0 billion, an…


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US rating downgrade to Aa1 from Aaa reflects “more than a decade-long rise in government debt ratios”, says Moody’s

Bankinter | Moody’s downgrades the US credit rating to Aa1 (Stable) from Aaa (Negative). According to the agency, it “reflects the increase over more than a decade in government debt and interest payment ratios to levels significantly above those of countries with similar ratings”. Analysis team’s view: It is the last of the three rating agencies to cut the triple-A; Fitch and S&P were already at AA+ Stable. S&P did…


Spain home market

House sales increase 40.6% year-on-year in March, totalling 62,808 transactions

According to figures from the National Institute of Statistics (INE), the sale of homes increased in March by 40.6% year-on-year, totalling 62,808 transactions. This represents the highest figure for this month since 2007, when over 74,000 sales were recorded. The sale of homes has now seen nine consecutive months of year-on-year increases. The year-on-year increase in home sales in March was a consequence of the rebound in transactions involving both…