Economy

Labour productivity in the OECD countries THERE ARE LARGE DISPARITIES IN LABOUR PRODUCTIVITY LEVELS BETWEEN COUNTRIES, EVEN WITHIN THE OECD AREA In 2021, average labour productivity in the OECD stood at $60.8/hour Most of the countries with the lowest labour productivity in 2000 have since increased it IN 2020, THE IMPACT OF THE PANDEMIC ON … Continued

Global short- and long-term risks (Global Risks Report 2023) THE RETURN TO THE “NEW NORMAL” AFTER THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC WAS QUICKLY INTERRUPTED BY THE OUTBREAK OF WAR IN UKRAINE, WHICH LED TO THE CURRENT FOOD AND ENERGY CRISES Current risks with the greatest potential impact on a global scale More than 2/3 of respondents expect … Continued

FROM A REVOLUTIONARY AND DISRUPTIVE POINT OF VIEW, THESE ARE THE TEN UNLIKELY EVENTS WITH A MAJOR IMPACT ON GLOBAL GROWTH AND FINANCIAL MARKETS (SAXO BANK 2023 OUTRAGEOUS PREDICTIONS ) 1 “Third Stone” billionaire coalition for a new energy system ▲ demand for electricity in the context of digitalization and energy transition → creation of … Continued

Sharp slowdown in global GDP growth in 2023 IN 2023, WORLD GDP WILL SLOW TO 2.2% YEAR-ON-YEAR, 9 TENTHS OF A PERCENTAGE POINT LESS THAN ESTIMATED FOR 2022, WELL BELOW THE RATE FORECAST BEFORE THE WAR. IN 2024, THE INCREASE WILL BE 2.7% Slight recovery in 2024 with real income growth and moderating inflationary pressures … Continued

Ageing conditions the sustainability of the system IN 2050 SPAIN WILL BE THE SECOND COUNTRY IN THE OECD, AFTER JAPAN, WITH THE HIGHEST DEPENDENCY RATIO *, WHICH WILL BE 78.4%, 25.7 PP HIGHER THAN THE OECD AVERAGE The dependency ratio in Spain will increase by 45.6 pp between 2020 and 2050, more than double the … Continued

Forecasts not credible and not able to build confidence UNREALISTIC PERCEPTION OF LATENT RISKS IN A CONTEXT OF HIGH NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL UNCERTAINTY Spain will not regain pre-pandemic GDP level until Q1 2024 Structural deficit consolidation FINANCING OF NEW STRUCTURAL EXPENDITURE WITH THE CYCLICAL INCREASE IN REVENUE RESULTING FROM THE IMPACT OF INFLATION ON THE … Continued

Global innovation trends REGIONAL INNOVATION GAP PERSISTS BUT SOUTH-EAST ASIA AND EAST ASIA CLOSE THE GAP WITH NORTH AMERICA AND EUROPE Switzerland maintains its leadership and the US overtakes Sweden to take second place in the global innovation ranking Spain’s innovation profile SPAIN’S STRENGTHS IN INNOVATION INCLUDE SPENDING ON SOFTWARE (%GDP) AND ENROLMENT IN HIGHER … Continued

Deterioration of the global economic outlook GLOBAL GROWTH IS PROJECTED TO MODERATE IN THE SECOND HALF OF 2022 AND TO SLOW IN 2023 TO 2.2% High inflation persists for longer than expected FOR THE MAJOR ECONOMIES, INFLATION IS PROJECTED TO PEAK IN 3Q22 AND TO DECLINE FROM 4Q22 ONWARDS, BUT TO REMAIN WELL ABOVE CENTRAL … Continued

Employment continues to grow despite GDP slowdown THE LABOUR MARKET HAS RECOVERED TO PRE-COVID-19 PANDEMIC LEVELS, BUT PROSPECTS ARE HIGHLY UNCERTAIN AMID WAR CLOUDS IN UKRAINE Uneven GDP recovery among OECD countries OECD employment returned to pre-crisis levels by the end of 2021, and continued to grow in the first half of 2022 Low-pay industries … Continued

Fears of recession amid high uncertainty (IMF) WAR IN UKRAINE, INFLATION, THE IMPACT OF MONETARY NORMALISATION AND THE WITHDRAWAL OF FISCAL STIMULUS SLOW GLOBAL GROWTH The inflation scenario worsens with an increase in the forecast of 0.9 pp for 2022/23 compared to Apr. 22 Expected increase in headline core inflation due to expectations unanchoring and … Continued

War slows post-pandemic economic recovery THE IMF FORECASTS GLOBAL GDP GROWTH OF 3.6% IN 2022, 1.3 PP LOWER THAN PRE-WAR ESTIMATE Europe and the US, territories with the largest downward correction in their growth forecasts The war has triggered a humanitarian crisis and a projected 35% drop in Ukraine’s GDP in 2022, with estimated losses … Continued

NATO, a political and military alliance and a transatlantic link NATO’S MAIN TASKS FOCUS ON COLLECTIVE DEFENCE, CRISIS MANAGEMENT AND COOPERATIVE SECURITY NATO, founded in 1949 by 12 countries, currently has 30 members. Finland and Sweden, awaiting the start of the accession process, are among the next countries to join the organisation NATO military personnel … Continued

Persistence of the adverse effects of war over time ENERGY SUPPLY DISRUPTIONS AND PRICE INCREASES DUE TO THE EU IMPORT EMBARGO AND RUSSIA’S EVENTUAL DECISION TO UNILATERALLY CUT OFF SUPPLIES TO EUROPE An embargo on European imports of fossil fuels from Russia would affect all sectors Potential impact of the Russian gas supply cut-off, 2023 … Continued

China’s growth slows due to domestic uncertainty THE “COVID ZERO” POLICY, WITH RESTRICTIONS ON MOBILITY AND LOCKDOWNS IN LARGE CITIES, IMPACTS ON THE CHINESE ECONOMY BY PREVENTING THE RECOVERY OF CONSUMPTION AND INVESTMENT AND SLOWING DOWN EXPORTS, ITS MAIN ENGINE OF GROWTH GDP growth moderates despite fiscal stimuli Exports decelerate to 3.9% y-o-y in April … Continued

New challenges for European economies THE WAR IN UKRAINE INCREASES UNCERTAINTY AND GENERATES FURTHER GLOBAL SUPPLY DISRUPTIONS, EXACERBATING INFLATIONARY PRESSURES FUELLED MAINLY BY HIGHER ENERGY AND OTHER COMMODITY PRICES The European Commission has cut its forecast for EU GDP growth in 2022 by 1.6 pp EU inflation to rise to 6.8% in 2022, 4.3 pp … Continued

Recovery to pre-Covid GDP levels delayed IN A CONTEXT OF UNCERTAINTY AFFECTED BY THE PANDEMIC, INFLATIONARY TENSIONS AND THE RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE, GDP SLOWS ITS GROWTH AND RECORDS A 0.3% INCREASE IN Q1 22 COMPARED TO Q4 21 Domestic demand remains the engine of growth, although external demand is improving its contribution The Government … Continued

Invasion adds uncertainty to recovery process WAR CONFLICT IN UKRAINE, WITHDRAWAL OF MONETARY AND FISCAL STIMULUS, CHINA’S SLOWDOWN, FINANCIAL MARKET VOLATILITY AND PANDEMIC SLOW GLOBAL GROWTH AND PUT FURTHER UPWARD PRESSURE ON INFLATION In 2022*, existing inflationary pressures since early 2021 will be accentuated After a strong recovery in 2021, global activity slows down in … Continued

Global smart home devices market Revenues from smart home device sales reached nearly $17 billion by 2021 Since 2015, the number of households with smart home systems has multiplied by 2.6 times, a trend that will continue in the coming years The US and China account for 46.5% of total revenues Trends impacting smart home … Continued

Reality of public accounts in Spain THE CORRECTION OF IMBALANCES MUST NOT NECESSARILY BE CARRIED OUT BY INCREASING REVENUES, BUT BY REDUCING PUBLIC SPENDING WITH CRITERIA OF EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS Public spending systematically exceeds revenues without evaluation of its efficiency Budget imbalance resulting in persistent public deficits over the last decade and high levels of … Continued

Energy dependency RUSSIA IS ONE OF THE MAIN SUPPLIERS OF GAS AND OIL TO EUROPE More than half of the EU-27 natural gas imports comes from Russia (36%) and Norway (19.7%) Europe, with only 0.1% of global oil reserves, concentrates 44.6% of its imports in Russia and the US Gas prices increase by 80.9% and … Continued

Deterioration of global economic freedom THE ACTIONS TAKEN BY GOVERNMENTS TO TRY TO CURB THE HEALTH IMPACT OF THE PANDEMIC HAVE WEAKENED THE LEVEL OF GLOBAL ECONOMIC FREEDOM THE AVERAGE SCORE FOR THE EU-27 COUNTRIES + UK AMOUNTS TO 72.8 POINTS “Moderate” economic freedom in Spain SPAIN, WITH 68.2 POINTS, IS IN THE 41ST POSITION … Continued