Bankia Studies | The Spanish economy has created more jobs than expected, allowing the unemployment rate to stabilise at record lows. The indicators suggest that the Covid-19 crisis had not yet infected the dynamism of the labour market. That said, the possible impact could be reflected in the coming months.
The average replacement rate in Spain -which is defined as the average pension divided by the economy’s average salary – is 57.7%. This is the third highest in the Euro Zone, 13.6 points over the Euro Zone’s average and 7.2 and 15.7 points higher than that in France and Germany, respectively. Funcas’ experts agree that the replacement rate, one of the highest in Europe, will need to be reduced.
The Mortgage Loan Reference Index (IRPH) represents approximately 10% of the loans granted in Spain and is the most used for Spanish mortgages after the Euribor, used in 90% of contracts. The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has left it to Spanish judges to analyze, on a case-by-case basis, whether the banks commercialized their mortgages referenced to IRPH in a transparent manner. They will be able to cancel them if it is found they have been abusive.
Alphavalue | BlackRock has increased its participation to 3.726% in the Spanish market manager in the middle of a takeover bid by the Swiss operator SixGroup. Is BlackRock expecting a counter-coup movement from Euronext?
Last week, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez implemented a package of 30 measures to tackle the challenge of depopulation and demography in Spain. Sánchez is firmly commited to cohesion, equality between territories and the creation of opportunities “where they do not exist.” He has already appointed an executive commission to lead the project.
J.P. Marín Arrese | Budgets stand as the paramount evidence for any government that it commands enough legislative backing. Especially when the governments in question cling to a fragile minority in order to stay in power. The Spanish Cabinet ranks high in this category, its survival is balancing on the thin rope the pro-independence ERC party is ready to offer. The price of this offer is engaging an open-ended dialogue on self-rule for Catalonia, plus an amnesty for the sentenced leaders of the derailed coup attempt. Both sides acknowledge that negotiations will lead nowhere. None the less, this offers political ammunition to ERC for quelling resistance at home in providing a life-jacket to PM Sánchez.
The arbitration proceedings started by a series of funds grouped under The PV Investors against Spain within Uncitral (a UN dependent body) have concluded. There was a minimum sentence of € 90M against the Spanish State, compared with the € 1.910 Bn claimed by the litigants. The ruling obliges the litigants to pay costs (of £13M) without any recourse, unless under very exceptional circumstances.
The Spanish Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda will put to Parliament before the summer an initiative to allow for the control of rental prices in those areas which have experienced exorbitant rises. With this measure, town councils and autonomous communities could put temporary ceilings on rentals in those areas where they are considered to have become very expensive. In Berlin, the cap on rental prices came into effect this very week, with the same objective as the Spanish proposal.
According to the latest aggregate Tourism Satellite Account from Eurostat, tourism consumption in Italy amounted to 146.33 Bn€, while the country’s GDP entered 2020 with a negative drag effect of 0.2%. European partners must be more worried about the potential upheaval in the country’s industry: the second largest in Europe. The key is that almost a third of its production is intermediate goods. Therefore any disruption in Italy’s manufacturing activity would be trasmitted to their European counterparts.