Spanish November Jobless Claims Fall for First Time in 17 Years
MADRID | By Ben Sills at Reuters | Spain posted the first decline in November jobless claims since at least 1996 as economic activity stabilized after a five-year slump.
Spanish economy
SPECIAL: Sovereign Funds’ Scope Reaches Spain
MADRID | By Julia Pastor | Sovereign funds’ bet on Spanish companies continued to be strong during 2012-13. Spain and its brands were these global investors’ favourite picks in the euro zone, overcoming English, German or French firms. The trend is to be renowed in 2014 because of their strong presence in the emerging markets of Latin America.
Spain new car sales rise 15.1% in November year on year
MADRID | By Reuters | Spain new car sales jumped 15.1 pct in November from a year earlier, car manufacturers’ association Anfac said on Monday, the third straight month of rising sales which have been boosted by subsidies.
Oil (and Repsol), Always a State Affair
MADRID | By Fernando G. Urbaneja and Julia Pastor | Repsol is a “rara avis”, a private and listed firm, with public shareholders and indirectly supported by the Spanish government.
A nasty surprise for Spanish banks
MADRID | By J.P. Marín Arrese | As credit institutions gathered in Frankfurt to meet top ECB officials for a first-hand appraisal of the forthcoming common supervision, the Spanish banks proved utterly misinformed. They had taken for granted that domestic sovereign bonds held in their balance sheets could be accounted at their nominal value. Yet Draghi failed to provide any assurance to that effect, hinting the issue being subject to review next year.
Lights and shades of Rajoy’s two years as Spain’s president
MADRID | By Julia Pastor | Two years, a €100 billion banking bailout, and a comprehensive package of structural reforms later, Spain’s president, Mariano Rajoy, celebrated on Wednesday his 2011 electoral victory. These years’ balance is some sort of bittersweet taste. The country’s external perception has improved, but unemployment and public debt numbers are still a heavy burden.
Spain Seeks Foreign Investment to Keep on Growing
MADRID | By The Corner Team | In order to ensure the consolidation of the recovery in the Spanish economy, all reforms and modifications should focus on boosting foreign investment in the country. After all, it has demonstrated to be a land of opportunities for smart investors.
20% of Spanish Bank Branches Will Close Before 2015 (Roland Berger)
MADRID | The Corner Team via CapitalMadrid | Spanish banks will close 20% of their branches by 2015, compared to 10% which shut down in Germany and 5% in France, according to a Roland Berger report called ‘The future of the retail banking in Europe’.
Spanish Banking Sector Non-performing Loans Reach Record in September
MADRID | The Corner Team | The balance of non-performing loans of the Spanish banking sector rose in September to reach a new record of 12.68 percent, since the 12.12 per cent in August, according to provisional figures that the Bank of Spain reported on Monday. The volume of non-performing loans rose 6.888 billion euros, up to 187.830 million euros.
Spain in Pictures: The road to recovery continues
NEW YORK | By JPMorgan analysts | The Spanish economy has been showing clear signs of recovery since the summer, although from very low levels and we see no time for complacency for Rajoy’s government, a risk investors are already highlighting. There are some pending structural reforms in the fiscal, legal and pension sectors, while, in the banking sector, we would encourage a final cleanup to prevent a Japanese-style downturn, regarding which the October deflation data may be a warning. In our view, a more stable legal environment is also necessary for investors in regulated sectors, where banks and utilities are likely to be most affected.