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World economy 5th March 2012

Putin’s rouble: too good to be true?

LONDON | Russian presidential election on Monday arose more questions than certainties, from politics to the country’s economy. As international observers cast a long shadow over the fairness and transparency of the process, thousands of Russians demonstrated to challenge Vladimir Putin’s victory, crowding into a central Moscow square to chant slogans against the former Federal Security Services director. Despite democratic concerns, Putin has once again grabbed the power in Russia….

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World economy 5th March 2012

China can no longer ignore its economic weaknesses

BEIJING | China’s belief that its model of development is legitimate is grounded on the fact that last decades’ rampant economic growth has been possible thanks to the very characteristics that define it. The leadership was convinced that, under such path, success was granted regardless of the fact that they were ignoring certain factors linked to aperture and development. They did not consider defining points as long as there was…

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World economy 2nd March 2012

Schroders: Japan’s rebound due to energy savings and public spending

LONDON | After the earthquake hit, the longer-term worry for both the equity market and the economy was that earnings power of Japanese companies had been severely damaged. But Investment house Schroders released Friday a note saying the worse scenario has been averted. Shogo Maeda, Head of Japanese Equities, confirmed that “corporate earnings have shown, and are further expected to show, a significant comeback during 2011. Corporate Japan continues to advance as historically high levels…

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World economy 2nd March 2012

US GDP in 1Q12, seriously injured

By Tania Suárez, in Madrid | Wall Street has been weighed down by a worse than expected purchasing managers index of manufacturing sectors or manufacturing ISM (Dow Jones: +0,33%; S&P 500: +0,33%; Nasdaq: +0,39%), which has disappointed both in its final reading and in its composition. Furthermore, the weak data of personal earnings and expenses in American families cast doubts regarding 1Q12 consumption. In fact, experts at Barclays point out: “we…

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World economy 2nd March 2012

Bernanke 1, Draghi 0

By Luis Arroyo, in Madrid | The US economy is on its way up to the growth heaven while others, like Europe, live under the knife. Broad money or M3 volumes have increased in the US by 10pc. In terms of what it is strictly required, the Federal Reserve is fulfilling its duties. The broad money supply includes factors of money supply and money and credit demand, which means that there is activity in all money and financial markets. The…

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World economy 2nd March 2012

The Irish referendum, as seen from Madrid: don’t be trouble, get in!

MADRID | While in Spain the formalities for the approval of the European Fiscal Treaty that was agreed last month by 25 countries of the EU are being carried out virtually unnoticed, Ireland announced February 29 that it will submit the matter to referendum. Despite this display of democracy, it is precisely just a display. Under no circumstances would Dublin’s ‘No’ paralyse the entry into force of the pact because it…

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World economy 28th February 2012

Federal government benefits for 46 million Americans

NEW YORK | One in seven Americans gets help from the federal government to feed themselves and their families. That is 46 million people, many of whom didn’t need help before the crisis. The current situation now leaves them no choice: their business collapsed, they were part of a company that filed for bankruptcy, they lost their home, bills started to pile up… there are many reasons to sign school-age children…

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World economy 27th February 2012

Billions of sterling pounds under the mattress

LONDON | The second estimate of GDP growth in the fourth quarter of 2011 confirmed the forecast of a contraction of 0.2pc, according to the latest UK Statistical Bulletin. However, the breakdown showed positive contributions from household expenditure (following four consecutive quarterly falls) and from net trade, with negative contributions from inventories and business investment. The British government said this presents a more positive picture of the expenditure side of the economy…

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World economy 24th February 2012

Bank of China arrives to Spain for more than just sovereign debt

MADRID | As the daily newspaper El Economista published Friday, China has been intensifying its landing in Spain and has set its sight, among many other things, on the financial sector. A year and a half after the first bank of the Asian giant landed, the Bank of China, which ranks the third, has set its first step in Spain. The entity has obtained the authorisation to operate through its division established…

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World economy 21st February 2012

New offshore discovery in Sierra Leone upgrades Repsol’s resources in Africa

A partnership joined by Repsol announced Tuesday it had made a new hydrocarbons discovery offshore Sierra Leone. The Jupiter-1 well was drilled in an area that already has produced successful results in 2009 and 2010, confirming the significant potential of this region in Africa. Repsol owns a 25% stake in the consortium, while the operator Anadarko has a 55% participation and Tullow Oil 20%. They drilled the Jupiter-1 well in block…