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France

European economy 14th June 2021

France Country Report | Massive Stimulus Measures Will Drive Economic Recovery

Crédito y Caución (Atradius) | In the first quarter of this year, French GDP grew 0.4% quarter- on- quarter, supported by the fact that another nationwide lockdown was held off until April. Growth was mainly driven by investment spending and a modest increase in private consumption. While the growth rate in Q2 will be affected by the comprehensive lockdownmeasures imposed in April, the gradual easing of those restrictions in May…

political prisoner

European politics 13th June 2021

Europe Must Do More To Support Political Prisoners The World Over

European Views | Alexander Lukashenko’s latest gambit was too outrageous for European policymakers to ignore. The EU rushed to react after the Belarusian dictator scrambled fighter jets to intercept a Ryanair flight between Athens and Vilnius to arrest dissident journalist Roman Pratasevich, banning Belarus-flagged carriers from European airspace and plotting a fresh round of sanctions. European policymakers have roundly condemned the abuse which Minsk subjects its detained opposition figures to—but unfortunately, they have not been as swift to fight for the rights of political prisoners in other parts of the world.

biden Putin

European politics 9th June 2021

Biden Arrives In Europe With Initiatives

Fernando González Urbaneja | President Biden comes to Europe this week with three appointments that we could call mandatory, habitual, but which take on relevance because they are the first of his term in office. For Biden, who has a great deal of international experience, Europe is not an outstanding issue, as it was for his predecessor. He knows the dossiers and most of the European interlocutors well, and his…

gender equality

European economy 6th June 2021

Gender Mainstreaming In The EU Budget: Time To Turn Words Into Action

The European Court of Auditors assessed whether gender mainstreaming had been applied in the EU budget from 2014 onwards. Their conclusion is that there is not yet any effective framework to support gender mainstreaming, and that the EU’s budget cycle has not adequately taken gender equality into account.They found that only 4 out of the 58 2014-2020 spending programmes had explicit gender-related objectives.

draghi black

European economy 4th June 2021

Italy | Rising Insolvencies Expected As Of H2 Of 2021

Crédito y Caución (Atradius) | Despite the deep economic contraction in 2020, Italian business insolvencies decreased 29% year-on-year. The decline was mainly due to a temporary bankruptcy moratorium and fiscal support. However, with the expiry of temporary adjustments to insolvency law, it is expected that business failures will increase again in H2 of 2021. Looking at the cumulative insolvency growth between 2019 and 2021, Italian business failures are forecast to increase 4%, with further rising insolvencies expected in 2022

europe industry

European economy 2nd June 2021

Microchips? Lack Of Plastics, Metals, Wood…

The Eurozone’s manufacturing PMI rose in May to 63.1 points from 62.9 points in April. May’s final reading is the highest ever for this indicator. In the case of Spain, the manufacturing PMI rose to 59.4, its highest level since May 1998.

Ibex

European economy 31st May 2021

Good Company, Bad Investment: The thinking Behind Investor Decisions

Ricardo Jimenez (Sigma Rocket) | The average holding period of a stock has been dropping for many years – and in 2020 it hit a new low. A study by Reuters of NYSE companies found the average holding period is now five and a half months, compared with 14 months in 1999 and five years in the far-away 1970s. Over recent years, falling brokerage fees and higher volatility have accelerated the short-termism of investors.

office property

European economy 29th May 2021

European Office Property: Does More Remote Working Mean Evolution Or Revolution?

Rigel Patricia Scheller (Scope Ratings) | Restricting people to their homes to contain the Covid-19 pandemic has changed how they shop, socialise, study and work. Some changes may prove long term, with far-reaching repercussions for real estate. The severity of the impact on office property is less clear.The Covid-19 impact on office space could markedly diverge across different parts of Europe. While the repercussions in some countries might be limited due to pre-pandemic remote-working trends, the impact might be stronger in countries with significant office space under construction, more pronounced vacancies and lower prevalence of home working before the pandemic started.

bank generico

European economy 26th May 2021

AT1 CoCos Shine Amid Rising Treasury Yields

As sentiment around banks improves, and the prospect of interest rates to rise it’s become increasingly difficult to disregard the potential of AT1 CoCos. Its history of providing portfolios with some cushion in a rising rate environment is sure to be an attractive proposition for investors.