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Realresidentialpropertyprices 1

Real Estate Bubble? Not In Spain

According to a report by the Bank for International Settlements, global real house prices increased by 4.6% year on year in aggregate in the first quarter of 2022. This strong growth in real terms reflected a surge (+11.2%) in nominal terms – the first double-digit one recorded since the eve of the Great Financial Crisis – partly offset by the acceleration in consumer price indices. Real house price developments continued…


European economy

Business activity in Germany declines for second consecutive month; France activity also drops for first time in 18 months

The downturn in the German private sector economy deepened in August, as business activity fell for the second month running and at a fasterrate in August. This is according to the latest ‘flash’ PMI® data from S&P Global. The deepening downturn was linked by surveyed businesses to a combination of factors, S&P Global noted. These included uncertainty, high inflation and rising interest rates. That said, companies’ expectations registered an uptick…


BBVA

Garanti BBVA cut to junk by Fitch

Alphavalue | BBVA (Add, Target Price 6,41 euros/share): Credit rating agency Fitch has warned that the political instability in Turkey steps up the risk of an intervention in the banking system by Erdogan’s government. Fitch has cut the rating of the Spanish bank’s Turkish subsidiary Garanti BBVA to the category of junk bonds.


Air Europa

IAG exercises option on 20% of Air Europa; becomes second largest shareholder in Spanish airline

In a historic move in the Spanish airline sector, the IAG group has now become the second largest shareholder in Air Europa, according to today’s Cinco Dias. In an announcement to Spanish Stock Market Regulator (CNMV) this morning, the holding which controls Iberia announced it has taken up the option on a 20% stake in Air Europa, the newspaper said. This option on the stake is part of an agreement…


Spain inflation

Spain July inflation rate confirmed at 10.8%; highest level since September 1984

Spain’s inflation rate rose to 10.8% in July year-on-year, as confirmed by the National Statistics Institute (INE) on Friday. The figure is six tenths of a percent higher than that recorded in June and represents the highest level since September 1984. The INE had given an advance of the July CPI figure at the end of last month. Inflation has now been over 10% for two months in a row,…


PatxiLopez

Patxi López’s Inaccuracies (*)

Warinca Arce | At the presentation of the new temporary and extraordinary taxes on large energy companies and the country’s big banks, Patxi López, spokesman for the socialist parliamentary group in Congress said: “Those who are protesting are the same people who, when they, the financial institutions, had problems, knocked on the door of ‘papa Estado’ to fix their problems. And ‘daddy state’ put in 60 billion euros…”…. “So far,…


eurozone quarantine

Eurozone Economy Is Slowing Down

Crédito y Caución (Atradius) | The eurozone is struggling with a strong divergence between a weak industrial sector plagued by supply bottlenecks, higher input costs and weakening sentiment on the one hand, and a solid services sector, which is experiencing a post-Covid rebound. We expect 2.9% GDP growth in 2022 and 2.5% in 2023. Among major economies, 2022 GDP growth since our previous Economic Outlook in April has been downwardly…


spain foreign policy

The IMF Cuts Spain’s GDP Growth In 2022 By Eight Tenths Of A Percentage Point To 4%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its GDP growth forecast for the whole world, including Spain. Spain will grow by 4% in 2022, which is eight tenths of a percentage point lower than the forecast published in April. The fall in GDP will be more pronounced next year if Russia’s war against Ukraine continues. According to the report ‘World Economic Outlook’, published on Tuesday, the IMF considers that in…


ECB's president Christine Lagarde

The ECB’s Resolve To Tame Inflation

J.P. Marín-Arrese |Christine Lagarde announced the first rate hike in a decade as an upfront offensive against inflationary pressures. While no one doubts this tightening aims at cutting short the current price race, the claim that it is an early reaction fails to match the records. For more than a year, all advanced economies have witnessed soaring prices. Yet, the ECB dismissed this trend as a temporary mismatch betwen demand…


lagarde

The End of An Era

Peter Goves, MFS Investment Management | A historic decision and the end of an era. No more negative policy rates from the ECB following the bold 50bp hike at the July meeting. Clearly, the ECB remains focused on its primary mandate: price stability. The shift in guidance is interesting and makes the ECB much data dependent as an institution. In turn, it likely means short rates will retain their sensitive…