The price of independence

[Tietar]

Advisors from multinationals advise "leaving only the indispensable activity in Catalonia"

The multinationals maintain plans to cut activity in Catalonia as uncertainty persists about the future of the community at least until the elections of December 21.

According to one of these plans, to which EL MUNDO has had access, the consultants advise that "the client contemplates trying to move all the possible activity out of Catalonia, leaving only what is indispensable within the community".

This plan has been prepared for a German company with a presence in Catalonia by Rödl & Partner. His representative in Spain, Georg Abbeg, confirms that they elaborate this type of exit plans for various clients "in a purely technical way without political motivations" in function of the interests of client and employee shareholders.

In his opinion, the application of Article 155 has provided "some peace of mind", but stresses that uncertainty persists and that contingency plans continue to be entrusted or activated for clients who wish to "minimize risks" in view of the prospects for independence. 21-D and a second wave of legal uncertainty is unleashed.

According to the document of this German office of legal, fiscal and auditing advice, it was advisable to act before the referendum on October 1, but, in any case, if you want to minimize risks you should proceed to move headquarters and "isolation of the activity in Catalonia ». His advice is to move "the social and fiscal domicile" to the rest of Spain and offer from there effectively all services to non-Catalan clients.

In Catalonia, it is advisable to merely leave a subsidiary or branch that is limited to serving exclusively Catalan customers. Rödl & Partner admits, however, this exception: «If for technical, economic or organizational reasons, the service or product must be managed from Catalonia». He gives as an example that the supply "requires the intervention of key personnel, technical instruments or premises located in Catalonia".

These measures are accompanied by the so-called financial 'cash pooling'. It is a matter of daily sweeping the bank accounts in Catalonia leaving only the indispensable liquidity in that territory transferring every day any excess of treasury to bank branches outside the Catalan community.

The head of one of the largest consulting firms in Spain, who asks for anonymity, says that this process has been produced by a multitude of companies in recent weeks; and describes the contingency plans prepared by your firm, in line very similar to those of Rödl & Partner. These also include a change in the relationship with suppliers or customers.

http://www.elmundo.es/economia/2017/...a308b4613.html

[Tietar]

The companies that have left Catalonia already exceed 3,000

A total of 3,050 companies moved their headquarters from Catalonia to other regions of Spain between October 2 and December 5, although the rate of departures decreased again on Tuesday, with a total of 19, which was the minimum the period, according to data from the College of Mercantile Registrars of Spain.

The pace of departures remained below 30 daily during the last week of November and, although on November 30 and December 1 rose to 34 and 31 transfers, respectively, on Monday it fell back to 24 and on Tuesday registered its minimum, with only 19 casualties, just two weeks before the regional elections on December 21.

However, the flight of companies from Catalonia has surpassed the barrier of 3,000 transfers in almost two months since the holding of the independence referendum in the Autonomous Community. In any case, the slowdown in the flight of companies continues, despite the application of Article 155 of the Constitution.

The month of November closed with 894 transfers of headquarters from Catalonia to another part of the Spanish geography, compared to the 1,982 in October. Since 2-O, the lowest number of departures took place on 23 and 28 November, with 21 transfers each, and this week, on Monday, December 4 and Tuesday, the 5th, with 24 and 19 transfers, respectively.

For its part, the days with the largest number of changes of headquarters in Catalonia since October 2 were October 19, with 268 companies; on October 9, with 212 outgoing entities, and on October 10, with 177 companies.

http://www.elperiodico.com/es/econom...s-3000-6480477

[Tietar]

Industrial slowdown in Catalonia, while Madrid shoots up: orders go up 76% in Madrid and only 2% in Catalonia

The leading indicators point to what Economy Minister Luis de Guindos calls "a deep deceleration" in Catalonia in the fourth quarter of the year. In one of the most relevant indicators, the order book of the industry, Madrid overcame Catalonia in September without producing either the 1-O or the declaration of independence.

According to the data released Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics, the annual variation rate of the entry of orders in the industry shot up 76.8% in Madrid in the weeks leading up to the illegal referendum, while it barely grew by 2, 3% in Catalonia. The average of the autonomous communities was an increase of 11.9%. Up to eleven communities outperformed orders for the Catalan industry in September, despite the fact that in the same month of the previous year, the situation was the reverse. The Catalan industry was the one that increased its orders in September 2016 with respect to the previous year, improving by 7.5%. The Community of Madrid then appeared only in the fourth position with an increase of orders of 4.6%. The national average was positive by 2.5%.

http://www.elmundo.es/economia/2017/...a058b46cf.html

[Tietar]

Pessimism comes to Catalonia: there are already more households that believe that their economy will go worse

The flight of companies , the downgrade of 'rating', the cuts in economic forecasts , the reticence to travel of tourists , the boycott of brands, strikes and mobilizations , the outflow of deposits , volatility in the markets ... So many were the negative news that surrounded the Catalan economy in the first days of October that ended up affecting the confidence of households. This is highlighted by the latest data from the CIS confidence survey for the month of October.

Specifically, the number of households that fear that their economic situation will worsen in the next six months rose strongly to 22.2%. A very rapid rise that contrasts with the normality reflected by the rest of the communities. Between August and October, the number of pessimistic households with economic developments almost doubled , from 14.2% to 22.2%. On the contrary, in the whole of Spain there was hardly any change, since it went from 15.1% to 15.6%.

This rise in the number of pessimistic homes responds to the political and social instability that has settled in the region since September, when the Parliament processed the legislation that gave place to the referendum and the unilateral declaration of independence (later overturned by the Constitutional Court) . Until the summer, Catalonia was one of the fastest growing communities , but now there are many doubts about what will be the real impact of the flight of companies and the fall of the confidence of companies and households.

https://www.elconfidencial.com/econo...r-cis_1488100/

[Tietar]

The boycott of Catalonia extends to tourism: 37,000 fewer Spanish travelers in October

The boycott of Catalan products has been a constant in recent years, since the Generalitat began its independence challenge. However, it was not until the referendum of 1-O when that boycott has also reached tourism . Many hoteliers had warned, but it was not until this Thursday when the first official data of the National Institute of Statistics (INE) were known, and they are very clear: the boycott of Catalonia has reached tourism. The number of Spanish visitors who traveled to the region fell by 37,000 in October compared to the same month of the previous year. A sharp decline that, in percentage terms, reached 6% , a drop that had not occurred throughout the economic recovery.

https://www.elconfidencial.com/econo...tubre_1482425/