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☆ Spanish windfall tax on banks, energy firms clears first hurdle
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Nov 24 (Reuters) - An amended windfall tax proposal for Spanish banks and large energy companies cleared its first hurdle in parliament in the early hours of Friday with the backing of the leftist ruling coalition and several regional parties. Some parties in Spain's northern regions, where energy companies and banks have a significant presence, had already secured before the vote an exemption of large energy firms' domestic regulated activities and foreign operations. Several energy companies had threatened to take the government to court if the 1.2% levy on power utilities' sales was approved in its original form. Initially, taxes were aimed to raise a combined 7 billion euros in 2023 and 2024 to help households cope with cost-of-living pressures. If parties in the Senate introduce additional changes, the lower house, or Congress, would need to debate it again.

At first we thought he might be a lesbian and was afraid to come out, but he wouldn't tell us. He confided to his sister first and a year later he told us he was transgender", Aslan's mother Beatriz Moya says. The bill would allow people to change their gender on identification documents without the need for psychological or other medical appraisals from the age of 14. Anyone aged 14 to 16 would need the agreement of their parents or guardians to change their gender. No scientific evidence has emerged that proves that self-identification laws lead to a higher rate of people seeking medical treatment to alter their bodies.

☆ Spain approves mortgage support for more than 1 mln households
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Jesús Aguado | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

In Spain, around three-quarters of the population are homeowners, with most opting for floating-rate mortgages which are exposed to interest rate rises. Other countries, such as Hungary, Portugal, Poland and Greece, have approved different forms of mortgage support. Spain's banks will provide mortgage support for vulnerable families earning less than 25,200 euros ($25,815) per year through an amended industry-wide code of good practice. They will be able to restructure mortgages at a lower interest rate during a five-year grace period. Measures will also make it cheaper for families to switch from variable to fixed rate mortgage contracts.

☆ Spanish banks have one month to agree with proposed mortgage relief measures
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Spanish banks have one month to agree with the mortgage relief measures proposed by the government, Economy Minister Nadia Calvino said on Tuesday. She added Caixabank (CABK.MC), the bank with the largest assets in Spain, has said it intends to agree with the measures. Reporting by Belén Carreño; writing by Inti Landauro; editing by David LatonaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Backstage, stars shine at Cuba's National Ballet
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Ballet dancers react backstage as they perform "Giselle" during the 27th Alicia Alonso International Ballet Festival of Havana, at the National Theatre, in Havana, Cuba, October 30, 2022. REUTERS/Alexandre MeneghiniHAVANA, Nov 18 (Reuters) - Cuba's National Ballet, founded in 1948 in Havana, became a pet project of Fidel Castro's 1959 revolution. Castro gave aspiring dancers free training, underwrote the companies' infrastructure, and cemented the national ballet's reputation for beauty and talent. Communist-led Cuba is struggling through economic crisis but its talented dancers continue to practice and perform. Reporting by Alexandre Meneghini, Writing by Dave Sherwood, Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Alcaraz breezes into Paris quarters, Djokovic also through
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/6] Tennis - ATP Masters 1000 - Paris Masters - Accor Arena, Paris, France - November 3, 2022 Spain's Carlos Alcaraz in action during his round of 16 match against Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov REUTERS/Christian HartmannPARIS, Nov 3 (Reuters) - World number one Carlos Alcaraz swept aside Grigor Dimitrov 6-1 6-3 to book his place in the Paris Masters quarter-finals on Thursday and reigning champion Novak Djokovic advanced with a 6-4 6-1 win over Karen Khachanov. Top seed Alcaraz dominated from the outset and dropped just two points on serve in the opening set before fending off a second-set fightback from Bulgarian Dimitrov to close out the match in one hour 12 minutes. "(Grigor's) level is very much not the level you saw today, but I played very well," said Spaniard Alcaraz, who is chasing a third ATP Masters 1000 title this season. Djokovic, a six-times winner at the ATP Masters 1000 event, delivered a commanding performance in his straight-sets victory over Russia's Khachanov, hitting 18 winners. Musetti, 20, fired 37 winners as he came from a set down to eliminate third-seeded Norwegian Ruud 4-6 6-4 6-4 and advance to his maiden ATP Masters 1000 quarter-final.

France, Spain and Finland said their rules are already structured to automatically take account of market tensions. The data tracked German, Italian, French, Spanish and Dutch bonds, markets which account for the vast majority of euro zone debt with nearly 8 trillion euros outstanding. So governments expect, and some formally require their primary dealers - banks that buy government debt at auctions and then sell to investors and manage its trading - to keep those tight. The euro zone is roughly 60% the size of the U.S. economy but it relies on Germany's 1.6 trillion euro bond market as a safe haven - a fraction of the $23-trillion U.S. Treasury market. Smaller governments pay premium over bigger rating peersEfforts by debt officials are welcomed by European primary dealers, whose numbers have dwindled in recent years because of shrinking profit margins and tougher regulation.

☆ Analysis: Catalonia's economic muscle weakened five years after separatist bid
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Joan Faus | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The fallout serves as a cautionary tale for the independence movement in Scotland, which is pushing to hold another referendum next year on breaking away from the United Kingdom. Junqueras was Catalonia's deputy government head when the region held an independence referendum banned by a Spanish court. Junqueras insisted the Catalan separatist movement is still strong, pointing out the increase in pro-independence lawmakers in the past decade. Like Scotland, Catalonia's independence movement is now pushing for another referendum, this time with the approval of the Spanish government. But as with the UK government and Scotland´s bid, Spain has so far rejected the proposal.

☆ Spanish soccer fan walking to Qatar World Cup missing in Iran
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Spanish man, Santiago Sanchez, walks in Iraq's Kurdistan region towards Qatar, where he aims to attend the 2022 World Cup, near Zakho, Iraq August 28, 2022. REUTERS/Charlotte BruneauMADRID, Oct 26 (Reuters) - A 41-year-old Spanish soccer fan who set out to walk to Qatar to attend the World Cup in November has gone missing in Iran, where unrest has erupted in the past few weeks, Spain's foreign ministry has confirmed. Spain's Foreign Ministry confirmed Sanchez was in Iran and its embassy in Tehran was urgently seeking information on his whereabouts to provide him with consular assistance. He has already been to Iran, it's a hospitable country... but this time it was a delicate moment." He told Reuters in Zakho in Iraqi Kurdistan last month that he hoped he might meet the Spanish team and inspire them to victory in the 2022 World Cup.

☆ ATP roundup: Stan Wawrinka ousts Casper Ruud in Switzerland
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/7] Aug 8, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Stan Wawrinka (SUI) hits a shot against Emil Ruusuvuori (FIN) (not pictured) during first round play at IGA Stadium. David Kirouac-USA TODAY SportsOctober 25 - Playing in his home nation and on a protected ranking, 37-year-old Stan Wawrinka knocked out No. 2 seed Casper Ruud of Norway 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the Swiss Indoors Basel on Tuesday in Switzerland. He saved all three break points he faced against Ruud, went 2-for-2 in break points converted and held a 9-5 edge in aces. In the second round, Thiem could face No.

☆ ATP roundup: Dominic Thiem beats top seed Hubert Hurkacz in Antwerp
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

1 seed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland in the quarterfinals of the European Open on Friday in Antwerp, Belgium. He'll meet Frenchman Richard Gasquet in the semis; Gasquet beat Belgium's David Goffin 6-2, 7-6 (6). De Minaur outlasted Canadian fourth seed Denis Shapovalov 6-2, 7-6 (4) and Rune turned the tables on second seed Cameron Norrie of Great Britain 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3. Musetti will be joined in the semis by countryman and second seed Matteo Berrettini, who beat Japan's Taro Daniel 6-2, 6-3. Berrettini's opponent will be Mackenzie McDonald, an American who rallied past Chinese qualifier Zhizhen Zhang 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.

☆ Spain's banks seek to extend mortgage lifespans for vulnerable households
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Jesús Aguado | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MADRID, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Spanish lenders are open to extending loan repayments for up to five years for vulnerable households that experience a rise of at least 30% in variable mortgage costs, a draft of the proposal seen by Reuters on Thursday showed. Banks would not have to automatically set aside provisions as a consequence of the loan extensions, according to the draft. "Households earning not more than 24,300 euros a year would be eligible to extend the lifespan of mortgage repayments," one of the sources said on Wednesday. Once the extension of the mortgage term to final maturity has been agreed, the outstanding loan would continue to be repaid in new instalments, according to the draft. "As it stands with this proposal, you may even end up paying more interest in the long term", Suarez said.

Amid resistance from France, Spain and Italy had previously broached the idea of building an underwater pipeline between the two countries. Iberdrola, which is building Europe's largest green hydrogen plant in Puertollano in central Spain, declined to comment on the pipeline announcement. Cepsa CEO Maarten Wetselsaar told Reuters the agreement put Spain at the heart of Europe's plan to diversify away from Russian energy. As for natural gas, Spain has six terminals allowing it to bring in liquefied natural gas and convert it into its gaseous form, and three storage facilities, while Portugal has one. The United States and Nigeria are among key suppliers of LNG to Spain, which also receives piped gas from Algeria.

In Spain, six vessels were frozen following sanctions imposed after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February. The "majority" of the owners are paying their maintenance, crew, docking and insurance fees, a source with knowledge of the matter said. In March, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez vowed, when announcing the freezing of one yacht in Spain, to hit Putin's allies "decisively" and "hard". read more read moreProposals by the United States and European Union to sell seized Russian assets and give the proceeds to Ukraine have stalled. In France, five yachts have been frozen.

☆ Spain's banks seek extending lifespan of mortgages for vulnerable households
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Jesús Aguado | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MADRID, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Spanish lenders are open to extending loan repayments for vulnerable households that experience a rise of at least 30% in variable mortgage costs, three sources with knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday. The proposal is part of a wider set of measures aimed at helping exposed families cope with an increase in interest rates and rising cost of living that banks are discussing with government. "Households earning not more than 24,300 euros a year would be eligible to extend the lifespan of mortgage repayments," one of the sources said. The banking association AEB and the savings banks association CECA declined to comment. "As it stands with this proposal, you may even end up paying more interest in the long term", Suarez said.

LONDON/MADRID, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Dozens of ships carrying liquefied natural gas (LNG) are circling off the coasts of Spain and other European countries unable to secure slots to unload because plants that convert the seaborne fuel back to gas are full. There are also LNG vessels at anchor near other European countries which could mean dozens more are waiting, one source with knowledge of the situation said. "If more cargoes were being produced companies might not be able to leave their ships waiting around so long," he said. If the backlog is not cleared soon those ships may start looking for alternative ports outside Europe to offload their cargo. The lack of pipeline infrastructure means that this gas cannot be transported to other European countries.

If Meloni wins, Sunday's election will hand Italy its most right-wing government since World War Two. German magazine Stern plastered its front page with a picture of Meloni under the banner: "the most dangerous woman in Europe". Macron has privately told EU officials he is concerned about a Meloni victory, according to sources aware of the conversations. rome-born meloni has a history of euroscepticism and shares Orban's anti-immigration views and the promotion of traditional family values. "This kind of 'sky is falling' narrative out there about the Italian election doesn't square with our expectations," one U.S. official said.

☆ Ex-King Juan Carlos' attendance at queen's funeral draws scorn from Spanish left
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Angus Macswan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

- Leaders from around the world will attend the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II. But Juan Carlos, who was related to the late Queen Elizabeth, received a private invitation to attend, a British government source confirmed. On Sunday, Juan Carlos, 84, and his estranged wife Queen Sofia were photographed at a reception in Buckingham Palace in London. A Spanish government source told Reuters that the Spanish Royal Household had led arrangements for Queen Elizabeth's funeral. Juan Carlos and Queen Elizabeth were related as both were great-great-grandchildren of Britain's Queen Victoria.

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