The Blackstone Group has bought 16.56% of Hispania for 315,37 million euros from QP Capital Holdings Limited and QPB Holdings, owned by George Soros. It intends to make a full bid for the Spanish socimi.
The number of Spanish unemployment fell by 47,697 in March in comparison with the previous month, according to figures from the Labour ministry. Figures of registered unemployed totaled 3.42 million, which was the lowest level of the last nine years.
Although most of Spain’s public debt belongs to the central Administration, the debt held by the 17 autonomous regions is by no means insignificant: it accounts for 25% of Spain’s GDP, way above the 16% it represented just five years ago. Many regions are now returning to the debt markets.
The credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s Global Ratings has begun to raise some Spanish companies’ ratings, which was expected after it improved its rating on the country from “BBB+/Positive” to “A-/Positive” on March 23. Bankia, Mapfre and state-owned Cores are the three chosen firms.
Renfe announced that it posted net profit of 70 million euros in 2017, its first ever profits without including extraordinary ítems.
Spain is far from complying on deficit and State debt targets. It’s still surprising that out of a total amount of debt issued equivalent to 137% of GDP, there can be an official debt of 98%, thanks to a cut which, under the EU’s conditions themselves, is fully approved. This growing divergence has been there for years, particularly since the PP entered government in November 2011.
In January, Spain terminated its contract with S&P (tired of paying for being knocked done by the ratings agency). S&P then replaced its management team in Spain and now, in March, of its own accord, – because Spain did not ask for the qualification – decided, last Friday, to raise its credit rating on the country by one step, to A- from BBB+, with a “positive” outlook.
More than 93% of German companies believe that the economic situation in Spain is ‘good’ or ‘satisfactory’, 25 points higher than two years ago. This is according to the bi-yearly survey “German Companies in Spain” published by German Chamber of Commerce for Spain in collaboration with the IESE Business School.
JP Morgan’s Asset Management arm will take a position of control (over 50%) via its investment vehicle Sonnedix in a 660 MW photovoltaic project in Spain. The investment will be for some 500 million euros.
The bullish cycle of the real estate sector consolidated in 2017, as shown by more than 460,000 homes being sold in Spain, up by 14.6% on the previous year. Will Spanish house purchases continue to rise at such a considerable rate? “According to Google search data, the outlook is promising,” say CaixaBank Research economists.