MADRID | By The Corner | Spanish CPI increased by +0.1% yoy in June, a tenth below the May rate. The underlying rate remained at 0% yoy and the inflation at constant taxes continued in +0.1% yoy.
MADRID | By Luis Arroyo | Let’s see some pictures showing how the Spanish labour market truly is at the moment.
MADRID | Op-ed by Jaime Santisteban | Spanish government is announcing “second generation reforms” in technology and innovation, optimizing of European Structural Funds for youth employment and public-private partnerships. Even a change in mayors’ election procedure. On which grounds? These measures come up after European elections showed a very fragmented political scene and a serious punishment to bipartisanship.
MADRID | By The Corner | PMI manufacturing in the Eurozone was weaker than expected (51.8 versus 51.9), except for Spain, whose PMI picked up to 54.6 from previous 52.9. The negative note was the French data, which plummeted 1.4 points to 48.5 thus maintaining the country in the economic contraction zone.
MADRID | By Francisco López | The need for goverment to increase income allocated to saving was among the major aims of the tax reform passed on June 20 in Spain. That’s why experts were surprised when knowing about the end of the tax exemption on the first €1,500 of dividend, which goes clearly against small savers. The government insists it is balanced out by other deductions on all brackets taxing savings.
MADRID | The Corner | Spanish mortgage business continued down the road and registered 13.4% less than last year in April’s property records. According to the National Statistical Institute (INE), the loaned capital for housing reached €1.5 billion, which is 8% less than the 2013 figure. Thus, the average amount of mortgages on dwellings in Spain is €100,394, i.e. +6.2% more than the previous year. The boards of technical architects awarded 11,680 building licences for new houses in the first four months of the year (4M2014), 9% less year-over-year. This construction visa remain far away from September 2006 maximum where they were beyond 255,000 in four months.
MADRID | The Corner | The production of vehicles in Spain exceeded one million units in 2014, after the 7% growth recorded in May, according to the Spanish Association of Car and Lorry Manufacturers (ANFAC). Thus, during that month, the level of manufacturing reached 232,762 units and the total annualized was 1,065,879 vehicles. During the first five months of the year, the production of vehicles in Spain grew by 11%. ANFAC estimates that the recording of production will reach 2.4 million by the end of 2014.
MADRID | The Corner | Spanish national tourism starts to reactivate: the number of travellers residing in Spain grew at the same rate than the number of residents abroad. The recovery in tourist expenditure of the Spanish households suggests that the private consumption may grow in the 2Q14 –although probably at a slower pace than in the previous quarters (+0.4%). The evolution of the heavy traffic in Spain’s toll motorways also points at a recovery in the domestic demand, which is a necessary component to compensate for the loss of pulse of the external sector and allow a new quarterly advance in the 2Q14 activity (+0.4%).
MADRID | The Corner | After reducing public subsidies to renewable energies sector from €8.7bn to €7bn a year, Spanish government is not considering a bail-out plan similar to the one rescuing the financial sector with a bad bank as some were longing to.
MADRID | By Carlos Díaz Güell | Spain has become one of the countries facing more arbitration claims from investors due to the bonus cuts to renewable energy, only behind Venezuela, Argentina and Egypt. And yet the government feels quite calm about it, according to official sources. The last one to sue has been British fund InfraRed Capital Partners. It also litigates for the bonus cut to renewable energy companies,claiming that Spain hasn’t respected legal safety of investors, violating the Energy Charter and expropiating them of their rights.