Economy of Spain | GlobalPost

Zara owner Inditex raises profit on global expansion

Agence France-PresseJune 12, 2013 07:41

Spanish textile giant Inditex, owner of the Zara brand, announced Wednesday a rise in quarterly profit as it pursued a global expansion with a string of new stores including in Japan, China and Russia. The spread of Inditex's worldwide reach boosted sales by 5.2 percent from the level a year earlier to 3.59 billion euros ($4.8 billion) in the three months to April 30, the first quarter of the firm's 2013 business year. Net profit climbed 1.4 percent to 438 million euros in the same period.

Sun shines on ASOS as Inditex and H&M feel the chill

Thomson ReutersJune 12, 2013 07:35

By Sarah Morris and Anna Ringstrom MADRID/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Cold weather in recession-weary Europe left spring collections on the racks of the world's biggest clothing retailers, Inditex and H&M, while small British rival ASOS beat the seasons with soaring demand for its cost-conscious online offering.

Former executive chairman of Spanish bank ordered back to jail

Agencia EFEJune 6, 2013 07:16

Madrid, Jun 5 (EFE).- A Spanish judge investigating alleged irregularities in Caja Madrid's acquisition of City National Bank of Florida in 2008 on Wednesday ordered the Spanish financial institution's former executive chairman, Miguel Blesa, sent back to jail. Judge Elpidio Jose Silva issued his ruling at the request of the Manos Limpias (Clean Hands) public employees' union, which has filed several corruption lawsuits, after hearing testimony from Blesa.

Repsol says it's open to any form of fair compensation for YPF

Agencia EFEMay 31, 2013 09:31

Madrid, May 31 (EFE).- The chairman and CEO of Spanish oil major Repsol said Friday that his company is open to any form of fair compensation for former Argentine unit YPF, which the South American country seized last year. Antonio Brufau said at a Repsol shareholders' meeting that "under no circumstances" will the company stop seeking to recover "what belongs to all of you, which is the fair value of YPF."

Bankia sells Florida bank to Chile's BCI

Agencia EFEMay 24, 2013 17:46

Madrid, May 24 (EFE).- Spanish bank Bankia on Friday agreed to sell Miami-based City National Bank of Florida to Chile's BCI for $882.8 million, part of a broader plan to shed assets. Although the price of the transaction is less than the $1.11 billion that Caja Madrid - part of the future Bankia - paid for a 100 percent stake in the Florida bank, the Spanish institution netted a capital gain because it had steadily lowered the subsidiary's book value since 2010.

Spaniards rail at Bankia as savings evaporate

Agence France-PresseMay 24, 2013 10:15

Spanish savers vented their fury against bailed-out Bankia on Friday after the already-diminished value of their stock investments in the bank plummeted by more than half in a single day. The stock market regulator, the CNMV, said it would examine trading in Bankia shares on Thursday, when the value of the stock plunged 51.4 percent to just 0.68 euros ($0.88) in brisk trade. By coincidence, the market rout came a day before chiefs of Spain's biggest banks came to testify as witnesses at the National Court in Madrid about Bankia's ill-fated listing in July 2011.

Spain on track for growth, job creation in 2014, business group says

Agencia EFEMay 22, 2013 09:48

Bogota, May 22 (EFE).- Spain's economy will grow and register net job creation in 2014, Spanish Business Council for Competitiveness, or CEC, executive director Fernando Casado said during a presentation in Bogota. The CEC is projecting gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 0.80 percent in Spain next year, a figure at the mid-point of the range of projections from international financial institutions, such as the World Bank, while the government is forecasting growth of 0.50 percent, Casado said.

Spanish banker charged with corruption is free on bail

Agencia EFEMay 17, 2013 17:00

Madrid, May 17 (EFE).- Miguel Blesa, former chairman of Spanish savings bank Caja Madrid, was released on bail of 2.5 million euros ($3.2 million) Friday after spending a day in custody on charges related to the acquisition of the City National Bank of Florida. Blesa was chairman in 2008 when Caja Madrid announced the purchase of 83 percent of City National for $927 million, though he had left the post by the time Caja agreed two years later to buy the remaining 17 percent of the U.S. institution for an additional $190 million.

Business group: Spain a gateway to LatAm market

Agencia EFEMay 17, 2013 09:46

Tokyo, May 17 (EFE).- The Spanish Business Council for Competitiveness, or CEC, brought its "Spain: A Land of Opportunities" report to the Japanese capital on Friday, presenting the Iberian nation as an attractive investment destination and a gateway to the Latin American market. It is easier to do business in Latin America, where Japanese companies are making a big push in areas such as energy, mining and infrastructure, "with the support of large Spanish companies" already well entrenched in that region, CEC executive director Fernando Casado said.

Spanish court calls top bank chairmen in Bankia probe

Thomson ReutersMay 13, 2013 10:54

By Emma Pinedo MADRID (Reuters) - A Spanish court has called the chairmen of the country's top three banks to testify as witnesses in an investigation into the 2011 initial public offering of lender Bankia <BKIA.MC>, which later had to be bailed out by the taxpayer. Santander <SAN.MC> chairman Emilio Botin, BBVA <BBVA.MC> chairman Francisco Gonzalez, and Caixabank <CABK.MC> chairman Isidro Faine are due to appear in court on May 24, a High Court spokeswoman said on Wednesday.