Link Securities | The National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) expects to approve next Monday, 28 April, its opinion on the takeover bid launched by BBVA for Banco Sabadell (SAB), according to sources close to the process, the Efe news agency reported. The work of the CNMC has been well advanced for weeks and now the result of the market test initiated at the beginning of the month to approve…
The debt of the Public Administrations stood at €1.646 trillion in February, which represents a growth of 2.6% in year-on-year terms, with €42,051 million more, as reflected in the data of the Excessive Deficit Protocol published by the Bank of Spain. Compared with the previous month, the debt balance increased by €16,906 million, or 1.04%. Specifically, the State debt stood at €1.498 trillion, with a year-on-year increase of 3.8%, while…
This is revealed by the latest Barometer from the Association of Self-Employed Workers (ATA), which details that “40.9% of self-employed workers state that their turnover has decreased in the first quarter of the year compared to 2024,” while “28.4% believe that their activity will decrease in the coming months.” In fact, “three out of four self-employed workers are not optimistic and have a negative (45.6%) or very negative (28.7%) perception…
The Spanish and US governments held their first high-level meeting yesterday, Tuesday, after Donald Trump returned to the White House on January 20th. Carlos Cuerpo, the Spanish Minister of Economy, visited Scott Bessent, the US Secretary of the Treasury, in Washington just days after Pedro Sánchez met with Xi Jinping in Beijing. According to the rhetoric of the new US administration, Spain is a problem because it is the NATO…
FEDEA, the Foundation for Applied Economics Studies, published a new document yesterday in which its director, Angel de la Fuente, points out that “The improvement recorded between 2019 and 2023 or 2024 is considerably smaller in the case of effective unemployment than in registered unemployment. Comparing December 2024 with December 2019, for example, registered unemployment has decreased by just over 600,000 people, while effective unemployment has only decreased by 72,000.”…
Bankinter | Standard & Poor’s revises Italy’s rating upwards to BBB+ from BBB, stable outlook. The agency highlights the improvement in public finances and estimates a progressive reduction of the deficit in the coming years. Specifically, it anticipates that it will stand at 3.4% this year (compared to 7.2% in 2023) and that it will fall below 3.0% in 2027. It also anticipates a gradual improvement in economic growth. It…
Alphavalue/DIVACONS | Brandes Investment Partners has taken advantage of the sharp fall in the stock market value of the Catalan company specialising in plasma products following the tariff crisis to increase its stake in the B shares (non-voting) to 16.4%, with an estimated value of €250 million. This position could be key if Brookfield decides to resume its takeover bid for the company. Grifols shares rose 6.63% on Thursday. Grifols:…
Intermoney | Aena (Buy, PO €215) held its shareholders’ meeting yesterday at which its chairman Ignacio Lucena confirmed their passenger traffic guidance in Spain of 320 million, implying an annual increase of +3.4%. The forecast was formally announced at the last presentation of the 2024 annual results, held at the end of February. In addition, the operator approved a future 10-for-1 share split, something that was also announced then and…
Banc Sabadell | Repsol (REP) will sell a part (49% stake) of a solar (300 MW) and wind (400 MW) portfolio in Spain that will come on stream in 2025 with a combined capacity of 706 MW, according to press reports. The valuation is estimated at over €900 million. Assessment: Positive news with little impact (3.8% capitalisation/8% NFD’24) if confirmed as more asset rotation was expected by 2025. We recall…
Link Securities | UFD, the energy group’s electricity distributor, will invest €1.33 billion until 2028 to reinforce and digitise its electricity grid in Spain, according to Bolsamania.com. The objective of these investments is to improve the service offered to its customers and to promote the development of the energy transition, as established in the new Strategic Plan. The investments made by UFD also aim to incorporate and provide a quality…