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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.
world growth

In the World, World economy 3rd March 2021

Is China the New Champion of Globalization?

Vittorio Emanuele Parsi & Valerio Alfonso Brun | On January 25, addressing a virtual World Economic Forum, China’s President Xi Jinping not only strongly advocated for a multilateral approach to the COVID-19 pandemic but insisted on the virtues and systemic benefits of free trade and globalization. Jeopardizing those elements may introduce conflict into the international system, Xi warned, clearly referring to, although not mentioning, the US. Can China credibly profess the virtues of globalization to achieve harmony and balance in an international system if it doesn’t adhere to international law?

investment funds general

Spanish economy 3rd March 2021

Only 8 Spanish Funds Would Have Liquidity Problems In The Event Of A ‘Major Shock’

Spanish mutual funds has a high degree of liquidity, says the CNMV after analyzing the mutual funds in a statistical exercise that puts these in a potential scenario of “large-scale shock” and with a “very low probability of occurrence” to see what could happen in the event of participants requesting massive redemptions for a crisis such as the Covid19 one . The exercise shows that only eight Spanish mutual funds could present problems. The total number of existing mutual funds is 2,700 according to the latest report by Pablo Fernandez (IESE).

woman BoD

Ibex, Markets, Spanish economy 2nd March 2021

Parity Target Accomplished In The Ibex35 With 31.2% Of Women On Boards Of Directors

The IBEX-35 companies have registered a historic milestone by finally reaching the 30% target set by the CNMV recommendation for 2020, according to the latest edition of the report ‘Women on the Boards of listed companies’, prepared annually by ATREVIA and IESE. The presence of women in the index grew 3.9 percentage points, to occupy 31.2% of the seats. This progress, however, has not been able to compensate for the sluggish growth of the rest of the continuous market, which only advanced 2 points (22.9%) last year.

Forty years of democratic Spain: Haves and have-nots of labour market

Spanish economy 2nd March 2021

Spanish Labour Market: Sharp Increase In Furloughs in February Brings The Total To Almost 900,000

Randstad Research | Unemployment in Spain increased by 44,436 people in the month of February compared to January thus raising the number of jobless people to 4,008,789, a barrier not surpassed since April 2016, reflecting the restrictions impossed to deal with the third wave of the pandemic. Similarly, ther was an increases of 160,000 people in the number of furloughed employees, bringing the total to 899,383.

AmazonTC

Spanish economy 2nd March 2021

Expected Investment In Logistics In Spain Will Reach Around €2 Bn In 2021

Investment in logistics assets in the domestic market could reach €2 billion euros in 2021 after some respite in 2020, undoubtedly due to the pandemic. All in all, the drop in capital invested in this type of asset in 2020, about €1.6 billion, was only 10% lower than in 2019, compared to a plunge of 35% for the Spanish real estate sector as a whole. Key players include the socimi Merlin Properties, as well as investment funds such as Blackstone, Brookfield and Apollo.

JoeBiden

In the World, World economy 1st March 2021

Bond Markets Warm Up To The Approval Of The US $1,9 Tr Stimulus Package In Early March

Olivia Álvarez (Monex Europe) | Joe Biden’s proposed $1,9 Tr stimulus bill will run its race in Senate next week, as House Democrats passed the legislation on Friday. The package includes $1400 direct payments to most Americans, a $400 weekly jobless benefit and an extension of unemployment insurance programs to a larger share of eligible candidates. The bill also includes $20bn for Covid-19 vaccinations, $50bn for testing and $350bn into state and local aids. The plan also aims to hike the federal minimum wage to $15/hour by 2025, although this particular amendment hangs on a thin balance.

pedro mario

Spanish economy 1st March 2021

Draghi’s Presence In Italy Reassures Europe, Will Spain Become Their Concern?

Spain may face a surprise problem if Draghi’s government remains for long as, in the eyes of many, we may become the focus of Europe’s problems. In recent years, our authorities have taken a rather conciliatory tone to Brussels, which has made it possible to dilute the fact that we have not fulfilled our commitments, especially when the belligerence of the Northern League’s government made us look like a good pupil. The former head of the ECB knows well how to handle the Community bodies and, above all, the mechanisms to generate a good image in the eyes of the markets.

climate change north pole

In the World, World economy 28th February 2021

Taking The Temperature On Climate Change – An Investment Perspective

Eva Cairns (Aberdeen Standard Investments) | December 2020 marked the fifth anniversary of the Paris Climate Agreement. For all the promises made during the talks, countries have already fallen woefully behind on their commitments to limit global warming. But could the narrative be shifting? Client demand for Paris-aligned investment solutions is growing rapidly. For example, the UN Net Zero Asset Owner Alliance consists of investors with combined assets of more than US$5 trillion (and growing).

Turkey Levent

In the World, World economy 27th February 2021

Three Reasons Emerging Markets Are Less Vulnerable To Another Taper Tantrum

David Rees (Schroders) | Financial markets in the emerging world suffered a wobble last month. It followed the belated “blue wave” in the US election which appeared to clear the way for a large fiscal stimulus, and sparked a sell-off in the Treasury market. The bout of volatility harked back to the Taper Tantrum that rocked EM markets in 2013. Fears of a repeat, as the US economy recovers this year, have become a major concern among investors.