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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.
bbva sabadell

Spanish economy 23rd May 2024

BBVA reiterates it will not improve offer for Banco Sabadell, believes government will eventually appreciate strength of deal

Alphavalue / Divacons | BBVA CEO Onur Genç has repeated in an interview with Expansión newspaper that they will not improve the offer for Banco Sabadell. Mr Genç hopes that the government will eventually appreciate the strength of the deal. The CEO explains that the decision has not been easy for the bank, but defends that it is a “transformative” transaction for BBVA Spain and “extremely favourable for Sabadell shareholders”….

Reino Unido economia

European economy 23rd May 2024

UK headline inflation in April down to 2.3% vs. 3.2% in March, core down to 3.9% vs. 4.2% in March

Bankinter : UK inflation slows sharply in April, although it came out slightly higher than expected – CPI (April): +2.3% year-on-year versus +2.1% expected and +3.2% previously. Underlying: +3.9% vs +3.6% expected and +4.2% previously. Assessment: Despite disappointing expectations, the deceleration is significant and this is good news on the UK inflation side. The price level decelerates for the second consecutive month, after stagnating at +4.0% at the beginning of…

spain

Spanish economy 23rd May 2024

Funcas revises Spain’s 2024 GDP growth upwards by two tenths of a percentage point to 2.1%

The Funcas panel has revised upwards by two tenths of a percentage point the GDP growth forecast for 2024, to 2.1%. The improvement is due to higher-than-expected growth in the last part of 2023 and the first quarter of this year, in addition to the fact that the most recent indicators point to similar vigour in the second quarter. Of the 19 panellists, 13 have revised their forecasts upwards and…

Amazon

Spanish economy 23rd May 2024

Amazon to invest €15.7 billion in data centres in Aragón

Amazon Web Services (AWS) will invest €15.7 billion to expand its three data centres in Huesca, El Burgo de Ebro and Villanueva de Gállego (Zaragoza), and add a new enclave in Zaragoza, which is expected to create 6,800 new jobs in the region. This is the largest technological investment made to date in Spain and southern Europe. According to the President of the Government of Aragon, Jorge Azcón, “the investment…

Telefonica novisima

Spanish economy 23rd May 2024

Telefónica pacts with Masorange and Vodafone to share frequencies in upcoming 5G rollout in rural areas and small towns

Banco Sabadell: According to press reports, Telefónica has reached an agreement with Masorange and Vodafone to share frequency spectrum for its mobile services in Spain. Specifically, the agreement allows them to use the 700 MHz band jointly in network deployments following the upcoming award of the Single Active Networks tender, which aims to extend 5G technology in rural areas and small towns. Assessment: Positive news with limited impact. The agreement…

comercio cm

Spanish economy 22nd May 2024

Spanish exports reach €93,430 million, historically second highest value for month of March

Banca March: Spain’s trade deficit was reduced in March. The data published showed that in March the trade balance registered a deficit of €2,026.2 million. The non-energy component increased its surplus to €444.4 million. If we analyse the aggregate data for Q1, the trade deficit was the second smallest since Q3 2021. Meanwhile, Spanish exports of goods reached €93,430 million (the second highest value in the historical series for this…

ArcelorMittal1

European economy 22nd May 2024

ArcelorMittal receives €250m loan from Flemish regional government for decarbonisation plan of Ghent plant

Morgan Stanley | Analysts are echoing a Bloomberg report, confirming that Arcelor has received a €250m loan from the Flemish regional government to implement a decarbonisation plan for its plant in Ghent, Belgium. This is in addition to the €350m already granted, for a total loan of €600m, and the €280m in aid it received from the Belgian government. Our analyst Alain Gabriel thus maintains his positive view of Arcelor’s…

Banco Santander office

Spanish economy 22nd May 2024

Banco Santander now largest capitalised bank in EU with €76,121m, ahead of BNP

Alphavalue / Divacons | The Cantabrian bank managed to overtake BNP Paribas as the bank with the largest capitalisation in the European Union, with a value of some €76.121 billion. The milestone came about because BNP Paribas’ share price on Tuesday discounted the dividend it will pay in the near future. When shares are quoted ex-dividend, there is always a downward adjustment in their value. Santander’s capitalisation on Tuesday stood…

Milei

In Spain 22nd May 2024

Sánchez recalls Spanish ambassador to Argentina because Milei called his wife “corrupt” and refuses to apologise

The disagreements between the Argentine and Spanish presidents go back a long way: Sánchez already called Milei a “reactionary” and refused to congratulate him when he won the elections in Argentina. But things got complicated when a Spanish government minister, Oscar Puente, publicly insinuated that Milei was on drugs. The Argentine government demanded an apology from the Spanish government, which the latter refused to offer. So last weekend, at a…

arcelormittalCM

European economy 22nd May 2024

ArcelorMittal among best positioned steelmakers in face of possible 10% reduction in steel plate production capacity in Europe

Morgan Stanley: Our analyst Alain Gabriel believes that steel plate production in Europe is set to fall by 10% in the short/medium term, due to increased financing pressure, decarbonisation policies and sanctions imposed on Russian imports. Returns for the sector in Europe have been lower (4.3% post-tax RoCE 2009-20) than expected over the last 10 years and Gabriel believes this has to do with a utilisation rate below potential. The…