He does not see any sign of stress in Spanish banks, which are among the ones that benefit the most from rate hikes
MADRID, 31 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The First Vice President and Minister of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation, Nadia Calviño, has defended that the temporary tax applied to Spanish banks does not affect the solvency and liquidity of the entities, while it is an element that contributes to “social peace” , an important asset when Spain is one of the main investment destinations.
“Ensuring social peace represents an important asset to make Spain one of the main destinations to attract investment,” the vice president said in an interview with CNBC.
In this sense, he stressed that the analyzes carried out indicate that the tax has no material impact on the liquidity or solvency situation of Spanish entities, “which are announcing record profits” and which are in a strong position.
In fact, Calviño has highlighted that “there are no signs of stress in Spanish banks beyond the general volatility of the financial markets these days” and has defended that the situation of the sector is totally different than in 2012, after the extensive restructuring carried out in the past decade.
“We must make a fair distribution of the burden of the war,” he pointed out, recalling that, when times were difficult, the State came to the aid of the sector, subsidizing the economy during the pandemic and also helping banks.
In this way, he pointed out that Spanish entities are achieving extraordinary benefits because “they are among the ones that have benefited the most from the rise in interest rates”, so, in his opinion, it is something “fair” and it has been demonstrated as an important element of social peace in the country, which is an important asset for the country.
“We do not have a plan to change, we do not see it as a sign of weakness but rather the opposite,” Calviño stressed, insisting that ensuring social peace represents “an important asset to make Spain one of the main destinations to attract investment” .
On the other hand, the First Vice President of the Government pointed out the “very good news” of inflation in the month of March, which has moderated to almost half that of the previous month, very close to 3% in the general rate.
“This is very good news”, he celebrated, although he has recognized the great volatility at this time when comparing it with the situation twelve months ago with the start of the war, although he has assured that “the trend is positive” and underlying inflation shows signs of stabilization.
However, he has affirmed that food inflation “is a top priority” because it is damaging families and has highlighted the measures introduced to alleviate its effect on households, the reduction or even elimination of VAT on some foods and other measures support such as free public transport.
Regarding the decision announced by Ferrovial to move its headquarters from Spain to the Netherlands in order to facilitate the listing of the company on the New York Stock Exchange, the first vice president has expressed her wish that “it does not finally materialize” .
“There are no substantive reasons for its transfer when the Spanish Stock Exchange provides the same kind of facilities for a double listing in the United States,” he assured, stressing that the government’s position is not “anti-company.”
“Companies are now having the highest profits in Spain,” he added.
