NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte urged Alliance partners on Thursday to raise military spending to 2% of GDP by summer and warned that those who do not comply will receive ‘a call from a very nice man in Washington,’ referring to President Trump. Rutte commented yesterday that there are already ’22 or 23′ states meeting the 2% commitment, but some are still lagging behind – Italy and Spain, among others…
Grupo ASE | The upward trend in electricity prices began last summer. This is mainly due to the rising costs of gas and CO2 emissions. However, analysts at Grupo ASE describe the increase recorded so far in February, of nearly 200% year-on-year, as extraordinary and point to wind energy, which has been well below its historical averages. They explain that the growth of renewables means that weather conditions increasingly impact…
Link Securities | Iberdrola (IBE) and Diamond Foundry have signed a contract whereby the energy company will be responsible for supplying the energy to the company for the synthetic diamond manufacturing process at the plant that has been commissioned in Trujillo (Cáceres), according to the Bolsamanía portal. The contract states that the supply will be 100% renewable and with a guarantee of origin issued by the National Commission for Markets…
Naturgy earned €1.901 billion in 2024, down from the €1.986 billion obtained in 2023. The company’s EBITDA was €5.365 billion, compared to €5.475 billion a year earlier, while investments for the year amounted to €2.280 billion (€2.747 billion in 2023) and net debt rose to €12.201 billion from €12.090 billion, with a debt/EBITDA ratio of 2.3 times. Naturgy has emphasized that these figures illustrate “the group’s ability to continue creating…
Repsol reported a net income of €1.756 billion in 2024, 45% less than the previous year. Adjusted income amounted to €3.327 billion, 34% lower than in 2023. The 2024 earnings were influenced by a complex geopolitical context; lower crude oil, gas, and electricity prices; moderate margins in refining; and low margins in chemistry. In this scenario, the performance of the company allowed it to improve shareholder remuneration and maintain an…
Link Securities | The Bank of Spain (BdE) published on Monday that Spanish public debt increased by €46.143 billion in 2024, to €1,621,515 billion, which is its highest level for an annual close. In terms of Spain’s GDP, public debt stood at 101.8% at the end of 2024, 3.3 percentage points less than in 2023. The improvement in the public debt ratio has a lot to do with the upward…
According to data from the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (Anfac), car production in Spain fell by 27.2% in January, reaching 168,076 units produced. Anfac states that the main causes of this sharp decline are the adjustments in work shifts made at production centers and their adaptation to the introduction of new electrified models, and it reminds that the drop in production occurs at “a critical moment for…
Luis Alcaide | In the past month of December, exports increased by 2.7% year-on-year, while for the entire year of 2024, they grew a modest 0.2%. Exports did not decline for the whole year, but their value in euros also did not advance; they practically remained stagnant. The total figures for 2024 amounted to €384.465 billion, lower than the €387.599 billion reached in 2022. This decrease in export volumes is…
This is clearly explained, in just a few paragraphs, by Jaime Terceiro, an illustrious Spanish economist and member of the Royal Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, who in a speech at the end of last year stated: ‘It is repeated over and over that our economy is growing almost four times faster than the European average with an employment level that reaches its maximum values. This is true, but…
Link Securities | Capital Group, historical shareholder of Grifols, faces its exit by placing its stake in the company’s capital below 3%, Expansión newspaper reported yesterday. On 7 February, as recorded in the records of the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), Capital Group reduced its stake in GRF to 2.902%, from the 3.406% declared on 5 February. Of the 2.9% declared by the fund, 0.45% is also on loan to…