Spain Business
Spain Business Brief – Wednesday November 18 2009
By m.p. - Nov 18, 2009 - 12:58 PM
email this article
The Industry Minister, Miguel Sebastián - EFE
Spanish Industry offers to mediate in Repsol conflict
The Industry Minister, Miguel Sebastián, is reported to have offered to act as a mediator in what El Mundo describes as the ‘war’ between the Repsol Chairman, Antonio Brufau, and the oil company’s principal investor, constructors Sacyr, headed by Luis del Rivero. The paper said Sebastián has asked both Chairmen to avoid an escalation of their differences and wants them to reach agreement on maintaining stability at the company. The paper noted indications earlier this week that Del Rivero could be pushing to have Brufau removed as Chairman of Repsol over falling results, increased investment commitments and cuts in dividend. There are concerns from the Spanish government that the conflict could end with the group passing into the control of other companies outside the European Union.
The lower shrinkage of the Spanish economy in the third quarter of this year, by -0.3% over July and September and the smallest contraction since the start of the recession, was due to a slight improvement in consumer spending and investment. The National Statistics Institute has confirmed that the GDP contracted by 4% year-on-year in the third quarter of 2009, after the previous quarter’s shrinkage of 4.2%.
Bad debt levels in Spain were at 4.85% at the end of September, a slight improvement on August’s 4.9%. The Savings Banks are those which continue to suffer the most with a rate of 5.176%. That is however their lowest level since June.
Another airline has announced strike action. Staff at Air Comet have announced stoppages next month over non-payment of their salaries, and will be on strike between 0000 hours on Tuesday 1st December to 1 minute before midnight on Friday the 4th. The stoppage then becomes indefinite between every Tuesday and Friday. It’s understood that most of the workforce are owed at least 3 months’ wages and the union said that many others who have left the company in the last year have not been paid their ‘finiquito’ compensatory payments.
Air Comet employs 640 staff and operates routes from Madrid to airports in Latin America. Their strike action will coincide on some days with the strike by Iberia cabin crew, whose protests in December are on the 1st and 2nd, and from 14th to 18th December.