The current political scenario in Spain requires us to highlight some points about our country, using as a starting point the Bank of Spain’s interesting analysis called: “The impact of the uncertainty arising from the political tensions in Catalonia”.
US President Donald Trump eventually nominated Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell as next chairman of the Federal Reserve. Governor Powell has never dissented from the policy actions of the FOMC during his five years as a voting member. However, it remains to be seen how he will make his own mark on the US central bank.
Inditex founder, Amancio Ortega, is still the person with the largest fortune in Spain, with 70 billion euros, followed by his daughter Sandra Ortega and and Mercadona chairman, Juan Roig. The three business people top the list of the 100 biggest national fortunes drawn up by Forbes.
Applus+ has reiterated its 2017 targets for maintaining revenues and operating margin in line with 2016 figures, with a significant decrease in gearing expected. Its 9 months 2017 results show the continued pressure on the 0il & gas industry.
Spanish factories output accelerated in the month of October hitting the highest levels for a decade, according to the PMI. This rose to 55,8 points in October from 54,3 in September, noting the “negligible impact” of the political situation in Catalonia, although political uncertainty could be a drag on future expectations.
The BoE hiked on Thursday interest rates for the first time in more than 10 years by 25 bp to 0.5%. Given that UK growth continues at its lower potential pace with GDP forecasts at around 1.6%-1.7% between 2017-20, it seems that only one additional hike next year is likely. The country has been the 4th weakest economy in the OECD so far this year.
Nick Ottens via Atlantic Sentinel | How can Democrats win back working-class voters who have switched to the right? The obvious solution is to become more populist. However, we have seen social democrats try this in Europe and it didn’t work.
The latest BIS over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives statistics referring to end -June 2017 have been published on Thursday morning.
Abengoa has signed a contract with Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. (APUC), which provides public services in the renewable and regulated energy sector, for the sale of a 25% stake in Atlantica Yield for $607 million.
S&P published a specific note on Spain economy on 31/10 where it states that the recent events in Catalonia should not have any immediate impact on its rating nor its outlook (BBB+/Positive). At the same time, Moody’s published a note on Spain which is more cautious about the risks of implementing Article 155.