Fernando González Urbaneja | The government narrowly (by one vote and in a second vote) passed the decree law (which will be processed as a bill subject to amendments) opening the door for up to 800,000 temporary public workers to consolidate their employment with stable contracts. Governments (state, regional and local) have been using and abusing interim workers for decades. To such an extent that the European Commission and the…
Fernando González Urbaneja | The description as “anachronistic” of the fact that the rapporteur of the Court of Auditors – in the case of the possible embezzlement of pro-independence leaders – was a minister in an Aznar government deserves some reflection. It begs the question of how the president’s mentality works, his concept of the constitutional system and the balance of powers. Added to this are the considerations of Catalan…
Daniele D’Alvia via The Conversation | Spacs have been around since the 1990s, but they exploded in popularity in 2020 and early 2021. This is partly because there has been more and more capital looking to make money, since bonds have been paying unattractively low interest rates, and far fewer companies are listing than in previous decades. Regulations have made traditional flotations slower and more expensive. Flotations are also traditionally underpriced on the day of listing to drum up investor interest. But a crucial advantage of Spac deals is that they are privately negotiated and avoid the risk of money being “left on the table”.
Ricardo Jimenez (Sigma Rocket) | In the last 18 months, sustainability has definitely made its way to the top of investors’ agendas. Gone is the old Corporate Social Responsibility driven by companies, a kind of philanthropic activity towards society, corporate marketing with little interest for fund managers. This change in mentality, supported by the circumstances arising from Covid 19, is being driven directly by investors, both institutional and retail. There…
Yesterday afternoon the UK changed its criteria and opened its hand by moving the Balearics, Malta and Madeira from the amber to the green list. This means that any British tourist will be able to travel to these three destinations from 30 June without quarantine on their return. They will not have to bring a PCR on entry to Spain, provided they have not travelled to another country in the…
José Ramón Díez (CaixaBank Research) | While expected, the rise in inflation is causing discomfort due to the high levels that have been reached and the risk of it persisting at those levels for longer than desirable without investors being startled. The key is whether we are faced with an economy that is simply skidding around as it seeks to accelerate from 0 to 60 in a short time, in which case inertia will allow it to easily regain stability; or, on the contrary, overheating caused by an excessively expansive demand-focused policy could test the strength of the economic engine.
Repsol (REP) has just submitted, via Hecatte Energy, an application to the New York State Office of Renewable Energy Siting to build a 500 MW solar plant in the towns of Elba and Oakfield. The plant will involve an investment of over $500 million and is expected to create more than 500 jobs during construction. It is capable of supplying 920,000 MWh of renewable electricity annually. This will be enough…
Fernando González Urbaneja | The approval of the 2021 budget was one of the first successes of the coalition government headed by Pedro Sánchez. It was like a resistance test for the alliance that made the government possible, with partners in the government (the United-Power conglomerate) and occasional partners in Parliament (regionalists, nationalists and various pro-independence supporters). The budget was approved after previous failed experiences and the government felt ratified…
Ronen Palan via The Conversation | Finance ministers in London from the G7 group of wealthy nations have agreed a deal that has been described invariably as a landmark that will transform the landscape of global corporate tax. The supposed deal is certainly transformational. Transformation from what to what? Is it going to transform a system of taxation that simply does not fit for purpose in the 21st? Or is it going to transform the techniques of tax avoidance?
Today, Monday 7 June, the Fed will start selling its positions in 16 corporate debt ETFs ($8.6 billion) as part of its decision to unwind $13.8 billion in ETFs and bonds under the Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility before the end of the year. The turn for corporate bond sales will come after the summer, in both cases proceeding in a “gradual and orderly” manner.