The Ibex 35 has registered a fall of 0.89% at the close of the session, to 10,975.6 integers, in a day in which the Madrid selective has returned to stock market activity after the break of Holy Week and in the that the data on unemployment and Social Security affiliation in Spain for the month of March have been known.
Specifically, the number of unemployed people registered in the offices of public employment services fell by 33,405 people in March compared to the previous month, which represents a decrease of 1.2% in percentage terms, according to data published by the Ministry of Work and Social Economy.
Likewise, Social Security gained an average of 193,585 contributors in March compared to the previous month (0.9%), its second largest increase in this month in the entire historical series, thanks to the boost from the hospitality industry, which added more than 81,000 affiliates. for hiring associated with Holy Week.
On the macroeconomic agenda this Tuesday, it was learned that manufacturing activity in the eurozone deteriorated again in March, when the PMI index recorded its worst reading in three months, with 46.1 points, compared to 46.5 the previous month. , weighed down by the contraction in Germany and France, the two largest economies in the region, in contrast to the growth observed in Greece, Spain and Italy.
In Germany, the CPI data for the month of March was published, when it stood at 2.2% year-on-year, which represents three tenths less than the data of 2.5% recorded last February and the smallest increase in the cost of living from April and May 2021.
Another reference has been the number of unfilled jobs in the United States, which stood at 8,756 million vacancies last February, which represents a drop of 8,000 vacancies compared to the previous month and implies a reduction of 1,093 million positions compared to twelve months ago.
In the business field, Nacho Abia, until now external director of Grifols, made his debut this Monday, April 1, as the company’s new CEO, in a context marked by the crisis unleashed in the company after the attacks by the bearish fund Gotham City Research, which could soon launch a new offensive against the Catalan firm, and for the doubts that it has to clear up before the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV).
Raimon Grifols and Víctor Grifols Deu, who have transferred their respective responsibilities as chief corporate officer and chief operating officer, respectively, to Nacho Abia from this Monday, April 1, they will remain as advisors to Grifols during a transition period that will end on May 31.
For its part, the Ministry of Finance approved the injection of 500 million euros to the State Society of Industrial Participations (SEPI) to undertake the acquisition of Telefónica shares, according to a report from the General Intervention of the State Administration ( IGAE).
In addition, Inditex returns to Ukraine after two years of closure as a result of the war with the opening of online commerce starting this Tuesday, April 2, to which will be added tomorrow, Wednesday, the return to activity of around 20 stores of its seven brands (three from Zara) in the kyiv area.
Naturgy held its general meeting of shareholders this Tuesday, with the approval of a complementary dividend of 0.40 euros per share as the main item on the agenda and with no progress to present on its Geminis project, to split into two companies listed on the cluster.
In it, the president of Naturgy, Francisco Reynés, has defended that the board of directors supports the command structure currently existing in the company, without the figure of a CEO with whom to distribute executive functions, an action that has also been carried out the company’s first shareholder, CriteriaCaixa, which today reaffirmed its commitment to the long-term project of the energy company and its management team, including Reynés.
Soltec shares, for their part, have closed with a fall of 7.39% after plummeting almost 14% at the beginning of the trading session after having to redo its 2023 accounts due to differences with its auditor.
Thus, in this context, only eight stocks have closed positively on the Ibex 35: Repsol (3.21%), CaixaBank (2.03%), Bankinter (1.62%), Rovi (1.30%), Naturgy (1.00%), Grifols (0.67%), ArcelorMittal (0.26%) and Sabadell (0.03%). On the other hand, the biggest falls have been those of Cellnex (-3.88%), Colonial (-3.83%), Ferrovial (-3.49%), Solaria (-3.27%), Meliá ( -3.20%) and Fluidra (-3.10%).
Most of the main European stock markets have also closed negatively, with falls of 1.22% in Milan, 1.13% in Frankfurt, 0.92% in Paris and 0.22% in London.
In the raw materials market, the price of a barrel of Brent quality oil, a reference for the Old Continent, rose 1.45%, to $88.68, while that of Texas stood at $84.96. , 1.51% more.
In the foreign exchange market, the price of the euro against the dollar appreciated by 0.24%, to 1.0768 ‘greenbacks’, while in the debt market the interest required on the ten-year Spanish bond was at 3.259% after adding eight basis points, with the risk premium (the differential with the German bond) at 86.1 points.
