Archives for August 2009
August 12th, 2009
Smaller than expected US job losses sent the euro down. UK economic data were generally good but the pound suffered after the MPC announcement. Sterling oscillated between €1.18 and €1.17 for the first three days of the week, looking as though it could eventually go even higher. That impression evaporated on ...
Continue reading Euro Weekly Update: August 12th 2009
August 11th, 2009
Just as investors pluck up the courage to once again dip a toe in the Mediterranean housing market, along comes a killer flu pandemic that keeps bargain-hunting foreigners thousands of miles from a purchase. Earlier this week, Palma Property Auctions – one of Spain’s biggest holiday home auctioneers – said rising ...
Continue reading Swine Flu Dents Spanish Property Sales
August 10th, 2009
Spanish banks have been doing their best to shield themselves from the bursting of the country’s property bubble. By buying properties before the loans on them go bad, lenders can mask their worst bets. Restructuring loans has the same effect. Help is now at hand from an unlikely source: the normally ...
Continue reading Spanish Property Tricks and Mortar
August 7th, 2009
Spain's Santander, the eurozone's largest bank, reported a first-half net profit of EUR 4.51 billion, down 4.5 percent from last year. For the three months to June, it had a net profit of EUR 2.42 billion, down 4.0 percent but still the second highest quarterly profit in its history, following that ...
Continue reading Spain's Santander Bank Profit Down 4.5%
August 6th, 2009
Spain's real estate investment trusts will do little to attract foreign investors or soothe its catatonic property sector before an expected economic rally in 2011, even if they do help detoxify distressed banks. "We should have had them (REITs) two or three years ago. They are locking the door after the ...
Continue reading Spanish REITs: Too Little, Too Late
August 5th, 2009
Spain's central government, which has boosted spending to fight a severe recession, said Tuesday its budget deficit soared to 3.64 percent of gross domestic product during the first half of the year. The deficit rose to EUR 38.6 billion during the first six months of 2009 from EUR 4.6 billion during ...
Continue reading Spanish Budget Deficit Rises to €38.6B
August 4th, 2009
Sterling better on improved risk appetite. Nationwide reports a third successive monthly rise for house prices. Sterling close to eight-month high against the euro. It was a rewarding week for sterling, climbing from below €1.16 last Monday to open at €1.1750 in London this morning. There was moment's panic at ...
Continue reading Euro Weekly Update: August 4th 2009
August 3rd, 2009
The AUAN group (Action 4 Almanzora) comment on bitterly disappointing moves by the local authority to sort out the problem of illegally built homes around the town of Albox, in the Almanzora region of Almeria, Andalucia. In April Albox town council published a new municipal regulation or ‘ordenanza’ which purported to ...
Continue reading AUN: Albox Regulations Farcical
