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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.
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In Europe 21st February 2012

British economist Angus Deaton awarded by BBVA Foundation

MADRID | British economist Angus Deaton was chosen Tuesday for the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award in the category of Economics, Finance and Management in this fourth edition. Mr Deaton is professor at Princeton University (United States), and the jury selected him for “his fundamental contributions to the theory of consumption, savings and the measurement of economic wellbeing. “His research,” the jury added, “applies rigorous methods to important real world…

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World economy 21st February 2012

New offshore discovery in Sierra Leone upgrades Repsol’s resources in Africa

A partnership joined by Repsol announced Tuesday it had made a new hydrocarbons discovery offshore Sierra Leone. The Jupiter-1 well was drilled in an area that already has produced successful results in 2009 and 2010, confirming the significant potential of this region in Africa. Repsol owns a 25% stake in the consortium, while the operator Anadarko has a 55% participation and Tullow Oil 20%. They drilled the Jupiter-1 well in block…

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Markets 21st February 2012

Spanish Treasury seduces investors, yields fall under 1%

By Tania Suárez, in Madrid | The Spanish Treasury keeps reducing the yield of its public auctions and demand keeps increasing: 5.9 times the offer (almost €15bn). Just a few hours after Europe has given the green light to Greece’s rescue package, the Spanish Treasury has sold €2,5bn –the maximum expected, at 3 and 6 months bills, and thus, it has reached the high end of the target range. Specifically, it…

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Spanish economy 21st February 2012

Light in the Spanish economy

By Enrique Quemada Clariana, in Madrid | As we are M&A advisors, last week a German investment fund visited us in Madrid with the intention of giving us a mandate to search for Spanish industrial companies on sale.  They think there are great opportunities in Spain. Their belief is that there will be an ‘inverse delocalization’, which means that, given the crisis that has taken place in the last five years and…

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Companies 20th February 2012

Abertis, ACS do not fear the UK

By Julia Pastor, in Madrid | In spite of the many difficulties that Spanish construction companies find in the UK, these firms remain undeterred and keep on defending their assets in Great Britain, as well as fighting to obtain new contracts in the country. This is the case of Abertis Infraestructuras, which will bring to court Luton Borough Council in a €360-million compensation claim if the local authority forced it to…

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Markets 20th February 2012

FSA fines Santander £1.5mn over poor information, clients didn’t lose out

LONDON | The British financial regulator, the Financial Services Authority (FSA), confirmed Monday that Santander UK was fined £1.5 million for failing to clarify under which circumstances its structured products would be covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The Spanish bank acknowledged that it could have replaced all product literature and training materials more quickly to reflect the FSCS position accurately. The fact that it allowed sales to continue with…

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Interviews 20th February 2012

José Sartorius: “Most Spanish employers understand UK’s ‘no’ to the Tobin Tax”

By Jacobo de Regoyos, in Brussels | José Sartorius Álvarez de Bohorques devotes most of his time to his role as a member of the European Economic and Social Committee. He was appointed by the Spanish Confederation of Employers’ Organizations CEOE and the Banking Association AEB. Are the Spanish entrepreneurs against the Tobin tax? Well, I have not met with all Spanish entrepreneurs, but the AEB and the CEOE are contrary to the Tobin…

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Spanish economy 20th February 2012

Is the Spanish government plundering power companies?

By Juan Pedro Marín Arrese, in Madrid | Year after year, electricity prices have been reined back below recognised costs, building up a deficit running now at €24 billion. This huge hole turned into a right to be paid back in future has suddenly been put in jeopardy. No wonder power companies are talking about daylight robbery. Are they justified in venting their anger on government? One can understand the…

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World economy 18th February 2012

Weekend read | Greece shows Euroland inability to run a monetary union

By Juan Pedro Marín Arrese, in Madrid | Greek politicians’ sheer incompetence and the stiff resistance of its population to renounce living beyond its means are branded as evidence of that country unavoidable failure. Yet it only shows European leaders’ blindness in grasping how a monetary union should work. Their diagnosis on where the problem laid has proved to be utterly wrong. Obsession about budgetary targets, they knew beforehand to…

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Markets 18th February 2012

Weekend read | China does help the euro, in Spain: ask their central bank

For months now the Spanish and international press have been announcing an imminent salvage of the battered European economy by the Chinese. What seems to be true is that it is something that is never confirmed, just rumours, no actual, concrete action on the part of China. This is the idea that is floating around the City in London and among the Anglo-Saxon commentators, especially among those who most favour…