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.
Spain has strengthened the supply of natural gas to Europe via France, consolidating its position as a transit country for this fossil fuel, at a time of high demand on the continent due to the cold spell which is affecting a lot of neigbouring countries.
Spanish pensioners are on the brink of war. The group which has been the support for families during the 10 years of crisis, and has saved the country from social conflict, received a letter from the Labour Minister, Fátima Bañez, at the beginning of the year. Despite the fact CPI is now over 1.5%, she said she was maintaining the 0.25% increase in the pensions.
Spain’s mortgage financing grew 9.7% in 2017, although in terms of borrowed capital the rise was much higher at 16.6%. So it can be seen that the recovery in the mortgage market is consolidating after the strong adjustment suffered during the crisis.
The German Federal Administrative Court has ruled that cities can veto access to diesel engines as an option to curb air pollution, following the court-indicted grace period until September. Other measures such as pollution stickers are also feasible. However, the ruling does not mean that diesel cars are vetoed in German cities from now on.
A report from Deloitte urges Spain’s Energy Minister Álvaro Nadal to change the current model for asset remuneration and go for one similar to that in use in other European countries. The proposal implies an improved remuneration system for companies and, at the same time, forecasts reductions in electricity bills thanks to bigger demand in a more electrified economy.
Despite the improvement in macro data over the last few years (GDP has risen by 13% and employment – Active Population Survey – 12.1% from its lows), the consequences of the crisis on the destruction of Spain’s businesses fabric still remain.