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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.
ECB2

In Europe 22nd January 2016

Will The ECB’s Commitment Be Enough To Stop Punishment From The Markets?

The ECB has committed to reviewing its monetary policy at its March meeting, leaving the door open to implementing any (monetary) instruments  it has at its disposal. Thus the central bank is acknowledging the increasing downside risks and the deterioration in inflation, failing to meet end-2015 expectations and discounting low or even  negative CPI rates in the European Monetary Union over the coming months. But the question now is whether its commitment will satisfy the markets.

Oil rig1

Markets 21st January 2016

Year 2016 Will See The Full Impact Of The Collapse In The US Rig Count

UBS | We’ve marked to market for 4Q15 and lowered our 2016 Brent/WTI oil price forecasts ($/Bbl) to $42.50/$40.00 (from $57.50/$52.50), reflecting the much weaker 4Q outturn and lower entry point into 2016. In the near-term the market remains oversupplied and we expect global inventories to continue building until 3Q16, dampening any potential price recovery.

Unicredit, Santander and Lloyds are Morgan Stanley's top picks to invest in the European banking sector again

In Europe 21st January 2016

A New ECB Provisioning Plan, Reclassification Of NPLs Doesn’t Make Much Sense

The Italian banks’ share prices have taken a beating recently on rumours – partially confirmed – that the ECB has contacted some of them regarding their bad loans. And now some of Spain’s domestically-focused lenders are suffering from a contagion effect, posting losses and underperforming as the scepticism spreads to their own NPLs situation. Banc Sabadell analysts highlight that “the risk of the ECB introducing new provisions or reclassifying NPLs would, in general, not make a lot of sense.”

BRICS

World economy 20th January 2016

Have the BRICs Hit a Wall? The Next Emerging Markets

Which countries are poised to become the next high-growth developing markets?Until recently, when people talked about “emerging markets,” they were referring to the BRIC economies: Brazil, Russia, India and China. Undeniably, these countries have changed the face of global business over the past 20 years. Yet lately, the BRICs have been crumbling a bit, sparking many reports about their lackluster performance.

kyri

In Europe 20th January 2016

Holding Out For A (Reformist) Hero

Nick Malkoutzis via Macropolis | Since the start of the Greek crisis, many international commentators (as well as locals) have been holding out hope that a reformist white knight would emerge from the political morass and ride to Greece’s rescue. Reality, though, has been equally consistent in shattering their illusions. Despite numerous false dawns, the latest candidate for this position is former administrative reform minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who caused an upset by winning New Democracy’s leadership vote on January 10th.
EU bonita

In Europe 19th January 2016

The Quest For Discretionary Fiscal Policy

Francesco Saraceno | The EMU policy debate in the past few months kept revolving around monetary policy. Just this morning I read a Financial Times report on the never ending struggle between hawks and doves within the ECB. I am all for continued monetary stimulus. It cannot hurt. But there is only so much monetary policy can do in a liquidity trap. I said it many times in the past (I am in very good company, by the way), and nothing so far proved me wrong.

Bank of Spain

Spanish economy 18th January 2016

Bank Of Spain To Calculate Provisions On Expected Rather Than Incurred Losses

The Bank of Spain plans to change the method for calculating provisions in H1 2016, in advance of the European Commission’s new accounting regulations due to be implemented in 2018. Under the new rules elaborated by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB), provisions will be calculated based on the expected loss in credit operations and not on the loss already incurred, as has been the case up to now.

European flags

In Europe 18th January 2016

Europe In 2016

Maxime Larivé | With the rise of the far-right, national politics will certainly have their say on international relations in Europe. It has become routine for analysts to identify issues and threats that may occur throughout the next 12 months. And every time, experts underline how futile such an exercise can be.

Renault follows in the footsteps of Volkswagen

Companies 17th January 2016

Renault Pricing In an Overly Pessimistic Outcome

UBS | What are the facts related to the investigation? The French state is undertaking an investigation on 100 models sold in France to make sure there is no installed defeat device. Renault has 25 models under review, which is equivalent to its market share in France. Four models have been checked so far and no defeat device was found.