Europe: Spain is not Italy

Eran Peleg, CIO November 27, 2018

Historically, Spain and Italy have been seen as two of the most problematic countries within the Eurozone. Some people still perceive the two in a similar light. But, nowadays, this is a mistake. Economically, they are in a very different place. While Italy is still struggling, Spain is doing pretty well.

There has been much focus recently on Italy’s fiscal problems and on a general moderation in Eurozone’s growth. And Spain? Spanish economic activity is not only stronger, but has also remained stable -- Q3 growth was 2.5% year/year. That said, the real differences are most apparent when zooming out and examining macro-economic performance over a multiple year period: growth has improved dramatically and the country’s debt is under control. See charts:

 The bull has long been a symbol of Spain. Finally, time to be economically-bullish?