The company said in a statement that this occurred concurrently with the conclusion of its acquisition of two Airbus A320neo aircraft, demonstrating enhanced operating capabilities.

This will make more than 1.2 million seats available for domestic and international travel during Ramadan.

The airline increased the number of aircraft in its fleet to 63 in December 2023 by purchasing three A320neos earlier. Flynas received eighteen of the same model jets in 2023 alone.

With these deliveries, the all-Airbus fleet of the Saudi low-cost carrier has grown by more than twice, or more than 100%, in less than two years. The airline has increased the number of A320neo aircraft it can operate by almost 73%, to 46 aircraft.

Four A330 wide-body aircraft are also part of the airline’s fleet, which increases its ability to serve pilgrims during the holy months.

As part of a plan to expand new aircraft orders to 250, these acquisitions are part of an order for 120 aircraft from Airbus, worth approximately SR32 billion (USD 8.5 billion).

Flynas said in a release that this programme aligns with the “National Civil Aviation Strategy” and that its goal is to bring the total number of international destinations connected to the Kingdom up to 250.

By 2030, the plan aims to achieve 330 million passengers and draw 100 million visitors.

Flynas offers over 1,500 weekly flights to over 70 domestic and international destinations. In keeping with the goals of “Saudi Vision 2030,” the airline wants to reach 165 destinations.

The airline recently took part in one of the biggest travel trade fairs in the world, ITB Berlin 2024.

Flynas revealed plans to launch additional flights between Jeddah and Berlin during the event. The flights would run between the two cities three times a week starting on September 4.

According to a press statement at the time, this is in line with the company’s objectives for “further network expansion in Europe.”

Meanwhile, Flynas has hired financial consultants for a possible initial public offering (IPO) on the Saudi Exchange, slated for 2024. The airline has engaged Goldman Sachs Group, Morgan Stanley, and Saudi Fransi Capital to work on the listing.

Flynas is partly owned by billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Company. Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which holds a 17% stake in the carrier, now reportedly looking to increase its shareholding.

The airline, formerly known as Nasair, has been considering going public since 2008, with the process advancing in 2016. It hired Morgan Stanley to advise on the share sale in late 2017 and then recruited Citigroup and NCB Capital for the planned offering in early 2018.

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Elon Musk mentioned his company having “excellent electronic vehicle demand” for the upcoming fourth quarter, amid investors’ concerns over the economic slowdown and high price tags of the Tesla cars affecting the company’s future.

However, Reuters reported about company executives admitting to delivery issues. The fourth-quarter car deliveries are to see some 50% growth in the coming months, while the production capacities will go up by 50%.

Tesla’s shares fell by 4.3% in after-market trading, immediately after the revenue figures came in.

While the electronic vehicle maker is maintaining a fast growth track amid recession, investors are keeping their fingers crossed.

Tesla posted a third-quarter automotive gross margin of 27.9%. In 2021, the figure was at 30.5%. Tesla’s third-quarter revenue count is USD 21.45 billion, while analysts predicted it to reach the USD 21.96 billion mark.

The carmaker also had a negative foreign exchange impact of USD 250 million on its earnings due to the US dollar strengthening against other currencies.

“Raw material cost inflation impacted our profitability along with ramp inefficiencies from the new factories in Berlin and Texas, and the production of its new 4680 batteries,” Elon Musk said.

“Logistics volatility and supply chain bottlenecks remain immediate challenges, although improving,” he added.

Elon Musk said that the new battery production has been gaining rapid traction.

The post What’s next for Tesla as company misses revenue forecast? appeared first on International Finance.

In this context, a report published by Ernest and Young found that there are 2,500 active startups with $2.7 billion in venture capital in total — meaning that Berlin is attracting more venture capital than any other destination in the EU. Still the figure is lower compared to Silicon Valley.

That said, Berlin has its downside too. This is especially true with entrepreneurs facing barriers to entry — a factor that does not obstruct opportunities for those seeking to establish their businesses in London or Silicon Valley. But that is slowly changing on the back of the UK’s draining talent pool as a result of Brexit. Overall, entrepreneurs in Berlin will have to sell their startups or go public to ensure higher local investment.

Elliot Limb, chief customer officer of Mambu in an exclusive interview tells International Finance: how the fintech community is sprouting in Berlin as it emerges as the next fintech destination in the EU — and Mambu’s role in fostering neobank innovation. With over 20 years in banking and fintech, Elliott has been named as one of the most influential people in fintech — and is an entrepreneur running a myriad of businesses across multiple sectors. Elliott is focused on a customer-centric approach to doing business, growing revenue and helping banks build flexible and scalable solutions.

Berlin is emerging as one of Europe’s leading fintech hubs in Germany. What is the role played by Mambu in supporting the country’s neobanking innovation?
Berlin is our headquarters and it is an important market for us. Our relationship with the likes of N26 has been fundamental as we grew with them. That said, we operate and like to be a part of the fintech community helping neobanks and the wider fintech ecosystem grow.

Obviously, there is a lot of focus on Berlin. I think we support it in every way possible. It is an interesting time as everything changes and we are continuously reassessing — taking a lot of pride in the fact that we are a Berlin-based company and want to give as much to the local community.

Neobanks are changing the highly competitive playing field of banking for traditional banks, while Goldman Sachs and Santander have hit back with their own digital platforms Marcus and Asto. Is a similar trend seen in Berlin?
I think it is happening everywhere. If you look at all the banks that are out there, I don’t think there are any geographical boundaries.

In fact, we are seeing that neobanks are growing but what is happening differently with the older and most established banks, especially with the tier 1 banks is that they initially got disrupted by neobanks.

Certainly, they can launch something quick, provide propositions similar to neobanks and have their capital to grow. For example, Deutsche Bank always has a good capital reserve and the regulation legislation in Germany has been pretty good. If you closely look at N26, they are taking a global view as a neobank expanding into the US. I think it is much easier for the longer-established banks to follow them and take the learnings.

How does Mambu’s cloud banking platform power digital-first banks like N26, B-North and Nimble to pivot mainstream banking?
We can help lenders and neobanks that are evolving to become bigger banks. The way we empower is that we look at banking and businesses in an innovative way by offering them a composable approach, where they choose and integrate the best solutions for their architecture. With that, we help banks build for today and become future-ready. In this aspect, we work with all our technology partners for something that is relatively at a low cost of entry and can be implemented quickly. The SaaS model from a pricing viewpoint means that you can grow with the business. We have become a part of the business ecosystem and align everything from strategy to value.

Berlin is perceived to be the crypto capital of Europe. Does Mambu plan to innovate blockchain to drive the future of neobanks in the country?
I think it is interesting for blockchain in general. We are not directly looking at how we implement blockchain but at how we are making banking simpler. At present, we are deeply focused on providing the best services rather than blockchain.

Sophisticated cyber attacks have stoked fear in the financial and banking sector globally. What is Mambu doing to guard against attacks and hacks?
Cyber attacks have been taking place for years. I think anyone who is working in a highly regulated industry such as banking has to be aware of it and the repercussions that follow. We build our solutions with robust security processes and take due diligence on a technical level and business level too.

As we remain at the core of banks, it is important for us and our partners to keep in mind all aspects of cyber security.

How are highly regulated markets like the UK, Germany and emerging markets like Africa encouraging SaaS innovation in fintech?
I think we are evolving. In fact, more people are beginning to invest their trust in SaaS. From a regulated environment, major players such as MAS in Singapore and ADGM in Abu Dhabi are ahead of the game with forward thinking. It also largely depends on what the bank is trying to use Mambu for.

At this point, SaaS is pretty much accepted everywhere and most of the nations have SaaS service. A lot has to do with a mindshift of the bank. So it is really about getting the mindshift around from capitalisation to operation.

In the big picture, the economy should make sense and we will have to decommission the old system and the old way of thinking to drive the SaaS solution. Otherwise, it could be a barrier to entry for people who do not understand SaaS. I think the only way forward in banking is to use the SaaS model.

What are the technology and banking regulatory challenges that Mambu is facing while supporting neobanks in Berlin? How can they be addressed?
I would say there are no real technology challenges as Berlin and Germany at large are a very well regulated market. However, as we move into larger banks, launching the speed boats is the first step. We are not seeing a shift from taking more volume and complexity to modern SaaS — pointing to a need in mindshift. So bringing that change in mindset is the real challenge, in addition to building trust to make people understand that SaaS solutions are just a redefined, agile version of what they have been using.

How will the year 2020 play out for Mambu in terms of competitiveness and technology development?
I think if we continue on our roadmap to develop our technology or have continuous release cycles, we will have a lot of new functionalities and find new ways of working. From a business perspective, we certainly see that Europe is our home and that is where the majority of our business has been. Also, we have been doing very well in Apac and Latam. That said, we would like to strengthen our focus in the US, grow in the Middle East and Africa as we recognise them to be high-growth markets.

The post Is Berlin turning into Europe’s fintech capital? appeared first on International Finance.

It is reported that the government’s share could increase to 25 percent plus one share in an attempt to acquire the airline. With that, it could save a significant number of jobs in the company.

Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, told the media, “The support that we’re preparing here is for a limited period. When the company is fit again, the state will sell its stake and hopefully … with a small profit that puts us into a position to finance the many, many requirements which we have to meet now, not only at this company.”

As part of the bailout package, the government will inject 5.7 billion euros in silent participation. Also, Lufthansa is expected to receive a 3 billion euro three-year loan from KfW and private banks.

It appears that the airline’s operations are healthy and profitable. However, the protracted pandemic has caused unforeseen trouble in recent months. In fact, Lufthansa is not the only airline to have received a rescue package from the government. Other airlines including Franco-Dutch Air France-KLM and US carriers American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines have also requested state aid after the pandemic hit global aviation.

The post Lufthansa accepts $9.8 bn rescue deal from Berlin appeared first on International Finance.

Then came along the big shocker – Brexit. The economic impact of Brexit was speculated far and wide. Even now, British politicians are panning out how this can affect the economy but its hard to tell how this will affect UK’s financial services industry. The impact of Brexit on UK’s economy cannot be overlooked – net migration of EU citizens into Britain halved in the 12 months to September last and investors are worried that the UK has lost its sheen as a professional destination. Data from Google has suggested that young professionals are not as enamoured to look for jobs in the UK as compared to the late 2000s, even during global recession. Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said Brexit explains the weak growth in investment in Britain.

However, a report in PwC has stated that the impact of Brexit on early stage fintech startups is minimal. Shortly after UK’s decision to leave the EU, there was a lot of buzz about European cities like Berlin and Paris becoming the next fintech hub in Europe. But the PwC report finds that despite Brexit, the country’s fintech scenario is looking up. Some examples include the London FinTech “bridges” forged with China, South Korea, Singapore, India and Australia. Japanese firm Softbank, meanwhile, has said the headquarters for its £80bn technology investment fund will be located in London, which is an encouraging sign for investment.

Meanwhile, the focus on the fintech industry has begun to shift even outside of central London. UK’s greater Birmingham is now the largest cluster of any UK city outside the capital. This increase is being driven by firms such as HSBC, KPMG, PwC and Deutsche Bank expanding their presence locally. Smaller digital and cyber security companies are capitalising from this emerging global BPFS hub as companies look to local experts to help deal with new technology challenges and cybersecurity threats.

There has been a 20% increase in the number of companies since 2010, with the total number of fintech companies now standing at over 2,145. Birmingham is home to 13,135 BPFS firms, more than any other UK city outside London, with the sector generating £13.2 billion per year.

PwC’s latest survey economic crime and fraud revealed cybercrime to be the most prevalent type of fraud experienced by organisations, affecting half of respondents. 42% of businesses expect this to continue to be the most serious, in terms of business impact, in the coming two years.

Nicola Hewitt, Commercial Director at the West Midlands Growth Company, said: “Greater Birmingham is very well-placed to respond to the technological challenges that are emerging every day, with incredibly talented employees specialising in cybersecurity being hired by local firms. Greater Birmingham has the largest number of tech start-up incubators and accelerator hubs outside London. This, combined with the largest regional BPFS and technology sectors, has created the ideal environment for new and established fintech businesses”.

Specialist insurer Beazley is expanding its presence in Birmingham as part of its drive to grow its UK regional insurance market activities. The company’s Birmingham-based underwriters will be among the first employees to occupy new, state of the art offices that will also house Beazley’s out-of-London operational support centre for its UK and European business.

Ian Fantozzi, Chief Operating Officer at Beazley, said: “Birmingham’s position as financial services hub and its rich talent pool made it the obvious choice for Beazley to build an operational base outside London.”

Smaller firms in Greater Birmingham are also looking to meet the demand from global businesses for expertise in financial services technology. This has resulted in a burst of new technology businesses such as Falanx, a tech SME specialising in cyber defence and intelligence services. The firm relocated to Birmingham from Reading as it was attracted by the recent regeneration and investment pouring into the region.

Jay Abbott, Executive Director of Falanx, said: “With oversaturated tech hubs in the south of the UK, Birmingham has opened a lot of doors that would not have ordinarily opened for us. The access to talent that the city offers has allowed us to cultivate our cyber security services and focus on innovating technology in a fast-moving, cutting edge space.”

The region’s world-class universities provide the perfect platform for budding tech entrepreneurs to grow, with Birmingham City University specialising in areas such as data mining, cloud networks and the Internet of Things. Greater Birmingham’s expertise in this field is ensuring that the talent developed at these universities is being retained by Birmingham’s businesses.

Tim Kay, Director and Digital Lead at KPMG moved from the firm’s London office and has seen first-hand how Birmingham’s booming tech sector has transformed the region: “With tech, you can’t be subscale. You need to be big enough to compete with cities like Barcelona and Berlin, and Greater Birmingham is well placed to do that. One of the reasons KPMG has done so well in the region is due to business demand. An unparalleled number of BPFS firms are increasingly turning to us to advise them on everything from data analytics to GDPR regulations.”

The UK’s tech talent is increasingly looking to locate to the region – attracted not only by the city’s career opportunities, but by the high quality of life that Greater Birmingham offers. The average salary in the West Midlands grew at the fastest rate of any region last year, including London, with this competitive salary offerings inciting businesses and individuals alike to flock to the region.

Recently, UK’s Cass Business School signed a deal with Chinese based accelerator BGTA and Chengdu Financial Group to establish a fintech trianing centre and develop a fintech summit. Cass Business School, as part of this deal, will help with the research and development of a fintech centre to educate professionals. Dimitrios Fountas, Business Development Director at Sir John Cass Business School, added: “Cass, with its long tradition of delivering expert-led financial education, and network of key technology partners, have supported the growth of London’s fintech ecosystem in many ways. Through our partnership with the Chengdu Financial Holding Group and BGTA, we are keen to support Chengdu in realising its vision of becoming a global fintech hub and stand ready to respond to a steady demand for training courses going forward.”

These developments point to how even a major political shake up like Brexit has kept the UK’s fintech sector relatively safe. UK leads the way in financial innovation, and appears to want to maintain that caveat for years to come.

The post UK’s fintech continues to dazzle despite Brexit fears appeared first on International Finance.

The main reason however, is by far, the fact that well-constructed data insights are able to open new markets, attract new customers, and bring new opportunities to every business.

How can ‘Data’ be tangibly applied to the ‘top and bottom’ line of a company?
This is not for the faint-hearted! It is a complex journey and requires a cohesive end-to-end strategy on how data is embedded and consumed by an organisation. A key responsibility of a Chief Data Officer is to make the organisation aware of the value of data at a corporate level and the value of the data dealt with by an individual. Virtually every C-level officer will agree that data needs to be treated as an asset.

My suggestion is that it is vital to apply a detailed understanding of the drivers of key business processes along with the use of a specialised application of Time or Activity Based Management, and finally, a structured sourcing, preparation, and processing of the data.

As mentioned, this is not a mini project and requires a huge amount of cross-functional department collaboration. By being able to show a movement in the unit cost through poor data quality, the impacts can be extended into core areas such as Pricing, Cost-to-Serve Customer, Cost Management, Transfer Pricing etc.

I therefore strongly believe that it is possible to tangibly value our data! The real question should be “If the C-level thinks data is an asset, why aren’t we all putting a tangible value to data?”

How can companies ensure core data responsibilities are included in key roles?
In order to answer this, we need to first look at what the challenges are. One of the issues encountered, is that the data subject is broad in its scope. Secondly, Business Owners have not historically accepted responsibility for their own data and IT have not done a good job in explaining the data subject to the Business Owners. Another issue involves the ever-changing technology creating a shortage of experienced and skilled data practitioners which goes hand in hand with the lack of education for the data subject. Another challenge involves the new segregation of duties for matters relating to data.

Each of the above points needs to be therefore addressed if we are to ensure the Data Responsibilities are properly embedded in the organisation.

Firstly, a formal Data training programme is required at each job function. What’s more, organisations need to formally agree on the roles required in the business and IT. Thereafter, one must define which activities will become automated and which roles need to be reskilled. Consequently, necessary training must be provided for the reskilled workforce. Finally, according to the newly defined data processes, service levels and workflow approvals must be agreed upon.

As the frequency of innovation and improved technology increases, the subject of Data Management is becoming broader, almost by the day. This poses the challenge of how to train the organisation and maintain up-to-date content with which to educate the organisation.

Once the technology change is managed, the underlying process changes are relatively easier to manage. The next challenge is to regularly train and retrain the workforce. It is essential to recognise that the next generation workforce requires a different set of skills. This requires a structured and ongoing internal Data training programme along with a management commitment to reskill the workforce. At the risk of stating the obvious, formally defined roles and responsibilities are essential. These have an essential part to play in a successful ‘social media style’ collaboration environment which will guide both management and workforce through to success.

There isn’t a silver bullet, however, I don’t think anyone would disagree that once teams are aware and properly trained about the impacts ‘Data’ has, they will see the benefits and naturally absorb responsibility.

In a world of constant change, does budget have its place?
This question needs to be asked very carefully and in a specific use case or context. If a person is held accountable for spend according to a set frequency and at specific points in time, then yes, we do need budgets for that.

In my personal view, I feel that nearly everything must change in the areas of budgeting, planning, and forecasting. With the introduction of Machine Learning, Predictive Analytics, advanced Visualisation and RPA, we can increase the frequency of our reviews, forecasts and budgets. With the new technology, the accuracy of the predictions allows for much faster remedial actions. The more advanced companies are already capable of forecasted P&Ls with a very high degree of accuracy. The ability to adjust budgets should not be far behind that.

What would you like to achieve by attending the 7th Business Performance Management Conference?
I have four objectives and reasons to attend the 7th BPM conference. Firstly, I want to get feedback on a personally developed Data Governance framework and understand how companies are implementing the above either in part, in full, beyond, or not at all. Moreover, I would like to see where Performance Management specialists find white spots or consistent obstacles in terms of ‘Data’ hindering the ability to do their jobs as well as to find companies or individuals with whom I can share and develop best practices. Finally, I look forward to meeting delegates and the organising team at marcus evans.

About Anwar Mirza:
Anwar Mirza is a recognised authority on the subject of Data Governance, Master Data Management and Information Management. For the last decade, he has spoken at numerous global events covering forums for Analytics, Finance, HR, IT, Legal, Mobile, Shared Services etc. Anwar’s keynotes, panels and Masterclasses are a balanced blend of cross‐functional, business and IT perspectives presented in a logical flow. Anwar has developed his own unique Data Governance methodology and deep‐dives into the critical areas that companies often struggle with and prescribes ‘Data’ as the new business imperative. His approach has been adopted by many multi‐national companies, software companies and consulting firms in the USA, Australia, Asia and Europe. With 29 years of experience at TNT, Anwar has a proven track record in Functional management, global project delivery, controlling core business processes, managing large teams, implementing applications and technology presented in the form of tangible top and bottom line benefits from the outset. For the past 6 years, Anwar has dedicated much of his personal time to lecturing at University level with a personal objective of bringing ‘Data’ into mainstream education.

You can read this interview in the May issue of International Finance. The 7th Business Performance Management will be held from 23-25 May, 2018 at Berlin, Germany. Click here for details. 

The post Ensuring core data responsibilities are included in key company roles appeared first on International Finance.

7th October 2013

Spain’s Prime Minister has presented its most pain free budget in many years, banking on a nascent economic recovery gathering steam in 2014. Based on a growth prediction of 0.7 percent the Spanish budget for 2014 included less cuts and greater stimulus, unveiling its government expenditures Finance Minister of Spain Cristobal  Montoro said the budget proposal was one for economic recovery which would allow the government to pave way for creation of new jobs. Spain’s 2014 budget follows a government revision of key economic data, forecasting gross domestic product (GDP) to rise 0.7 percent rather than  0.5 as calculated previously and lower than expected unemployment with a rate of 25.9 percent.

The debt laden country which is Eurozone’s fourth largest economy is climbing out of a two year recession, expecting a first quarter of economic expansion in the July through September period.

Banking Sector Stabilises

The European Central Bank and the European Commission said Spain’s banking sector is on the road to recovery, but the country must keep up the pace of overhaul, especially on the labour markets and pension reforms. The country slipped into recession in 2008 when a real-estate boom collapsed, making its banks insolvent and raising doubts about the country’s solvency, GDP of the country which staged a recovery in 2010 and 2011 has shrunk 7.5 percent in the past five years. The debt laden country received $ 135.2 billion credit line from the European Union in exchange for a commitment to restructure its banks and continue its austerity programmes. The bailout package has seems to have done a lot of good to Spanish banks, the banking sector liquidity and the financing structures have improved as bank deposits have risen and lenders have regained their access to market funding.  On the negative side, mortgage delinquencies have reached to 5 percent for the first time, just a year ago this was just 3.23 percent – thwarting the efforts of the government to increase its growth forecast. European review agencies have said it was vital to maintain the proper checks of the banking sector’s solvency and resilience to shocks. However, the recovery in the banking sector has prompted the Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy slash Spain’s huge budget deficit from an estimated 6.5 percent of GDP to 5.8 percent of GDP in 2014. In order to achieve the projected growth the government is freezing civil servants’ salaries for the fourth consecutive year and plugging loopholes on corporate taxes and create more revenue from sales taxes. The government has also adopted a pension reform plan, which would save 800 million Euros next year and 33 billion Euros over the course of the next decade.

Unemployment

Spaniards continue to migrate to Germany and France where they find suitable jobs, despite a downward revision – the government still expects unemployment rates to end the year at 26.6 percent and expects it to fall at 25.9 percent at the end of 2014.

Tourism

The number of tourist visits grew by 3.9 percent in the first seven months of the year compared to the same period in 2012. The number of foreign visitors increased this year mainly due to civil unrest in Turkey and Egypt, the number of visitors from Russia has seen a huge increase followed by Britain and France. Tourism contributed over 5 percent to the nation’s GDP and added 900,000 jobs in 2012.

Exports Boom

The country embroiled in an economic crisis- may have finally seen some kind of hope in the form of  rising exports, “The country’s exports are outpacing other countries including Germany” said Antonio Roldan, a European analyst at Eurasia group – adding cheap labour have increased its competiveness in the exports industry. The Port of Barcelona in north-east Spain is a bee-hive of activity where export drive can be seen, the Port is the country’s third largest container dock, behind Valencia and Algeciras, and handles exports and imports of more than 3000 countries, representing a combined turnover of 300 billion Euros ($ 393 billion). Roldan said the port- a vital channel for all Spanish external trade, has become an artery of the economy. It employs over 13,000 people and on its website claims that for every two jobs it creates, three additional jobs are created in the economy as a whole. The economic ministry said the shortfall of exports to imports fell to 786.7 million Euros, Spain exported goods and services worth 19.86 billion Euros, a record for July and a 1.3 percent rise on the same period a year ago. Its trade deficit fell by 68.8 percent in the first half of 2013 to 5.8 billion Euros, the Economic ministry said.

Spain’s senior populace and bankers say the country is not only emerging from recession but has used the harsh years of the downturn to make the economy more competitive, less dependent on real-estate and relying on macroeconomic indicators such as high-value exports. However, despite the resurgence of the banking sector and growing Exports, the economic hardship continues with staggering unemployment levels and low standards of living, in places such as Andalucia, the economic hardship is severe.

Our View

Eurozone’s fourth largest recovery has staged a recovery of sorts – the numbers are impressive, after nine successive quarters of decline, Spain’s GDP is expected to return to growth this quarter. Exports, which accounted for 20 percent of GDP before the crisis, now make up almost 35 percent of national output. The recovery path architected by political leaders in Berlin has seen positive results, the current account which had a deficit of 10 percent in 2007 is expected to have a surplus of 2 percent this year, its  well architected spending cuts, tax increases and labour market reforms are bearing results on the economy but seeing outrage from the ordinary voters and trade unions. The export backed recovery of Spain has other dangers, Madrid revealed earlier this week that its public debt was 100 percent of GDP and some economists reckon the debt will rise to 110 percent by 2018. As Prof. Juan Rubio Ramirez, Professor of Economics  at Duke University in North Carolina says it is very rare for a country to suffer from such high levels of external and internal debt, leaving it vulnerable for external shock and renewed market jitters. “You need high growth or high level of inflation to make that kind of debt sustainable” he says.

The post Exports, Austerity Help Spain Recover from Recession appeared first on International Finance.