MADRID | May 8, 2015 | By Félix Lores Juberías and Ignacio San Martín at BBVA Reasearch | Housing sales growth moderated in February while the mortgage market regains dynamism. On the other hand, the upturn in construction activity was mirrored in the land market, with an increase in transaction numbers and a mild rise in the price of urban plots.
MADRID | May 7, 2015 | By Luis Arroyo | Credit lending to the private sector (households and companies) continued to fall in March, according to the Bank of Spain. So as a matter of fact there is more lending activity in the country, yet the money is going to the public sector.
The Corner | May 4, 2015 | For the past 17 months, operating in the Spanish manufacturing sector has been easier (more output and new orders were registered), thanks to an increasing client demand, according to the last PMI data released by Markit, although the firm’s indicator posted 54.2 in April, down fractionally from the reading of 54.3 in March.
MADRID | April 25, 2015 | By Ofelia Marín-Lozano | The Euro Stoxx 50 banking index traded at 450 points in 2007. It fell to 70 during the crisis and in the last two years has recovered up to 160 points. In parallel, the profit of large listed Spanish banks fell between 2007 and 2012 to levels around a quarter of the previous highs. Since then it has been recovering, although at the end of 2014 it still was at around 50% of 2007 levels.
The Corner | April 23, 2015 | The number of unemployed Spaniards decreased in the first quarter of 2015 by 13,100 people, and reached the figure of 5,444,600, according to the official Employment Active Population survey released on Thursday (23.78% of the active population). “The employment survey seems to be the only one of which the government is not afraid,” famous radio host Carlos Alsina ironized, referring to Mr Rajoy’s cabinet struggle to contain the fallout from a tax investigation against former senior leader of the party and IMF head Rodrigo Rato.
The Corner | April 18, 2015 | The IMF raised growth expectations for all the major economies in the Eurozone – especially Spain to 2.5% in 2015 and 2% in 2016- and for Japan. The new figures, the sixth improved forecast in a row– are more aligned with Madrid expectations (2%, although the Minister of Economy even forecasts a 3% growth). Low oil prices, the euro depreciation and the ECB’s monthly liquidity shots are the three aces of the Spanish government, who is hoping to retain the power in the next general election despite the popularity of new parties.
MADRID | April 8, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | Earlier this year, Santander announced a capital increase of €7 billion through an accelerated book building offer to institutional investors at a 12% discount on the traded share price, which was between €6-€7. Within hours, the new shares were sold and existing shareholders were left as bystanders once they had authorised the board to waive their preferential subscription rights.
The Corner | April 7, 2015 | Analysis from Barclays | Spanish composite PMIs rebounded to 56.9 (+0.9 point) in March, as services PMI overshot expectations (57.3) and manufacturing output remained broadly stable (55.5). The services sector’s solid performance (PMI at an eight month high) was primarily triggered by stronger new business.
The Corner | April 1, 2015 | Public works contracts grew by €2.88 billion (25%) in 2015, bucking a negative trend that had been prevalent for the previous seven years.
MADRID | March 24, 2015 | By Fernando G. Urbaneja | The Andalusia election results have offered some solace to the ruling socialist party, but the arrival of upstarts Podemos and Ciudadanos as political forces delivers a strong message to Spain’s traditional parties.