The Ibex closes a week of consolidation of levels glued to 8,500 points

The financial sector has clearly been the protagonist. CaixaBank and Bankia have anticipated a severe cut in staff after completing their merger, which will be announced after Easter and may mean between 7,000 and 8,000 layoffs.

Likewise, Santander has made headlines because it has announced that it will launch an offer for 8.3% of its subsidiary in Mexico for 550 million euros.

At the macro level, GDP in Spain fell by a historic 10.8% in 2020, with zero growth in the fourth quarter. The IFO in Germany for March was higher than expected. The IFO for business confidence rose to 96.6 from 92.7.

Regarding the Spanish GDP, Ana Botín has anticipated an "intense rebound" of the Spanish and European economies during the second half of this 2021 and throughout all of 2022, if the vaccination plan is fulfilled.

In addition, Bank of America analysts have raised their growth forecast for Spain by three tenths, to 4.8% for 2021 and 2022, due to the 11bn euro stimulus approved by the Spanish Government.

THE EU PLANS

The result of the European Council on Thursday was what was expected. The European Union has been planted in the 'war of vaccines'. The heads of State and Government have claimed the role of the bloc as an exporting power of vaccines against Covid-19, but have also warned that it could change its attitude to guarantee the supply of doses to its citizens if there is no reciprocity from other parts of the world or if pharmaceutical companies do not comply with the agreement.

"There is a very broad consensus among the Member States that we want to guarantee the supply chain and an open economy, but at the same time we want more transparency and ensure that contracts are fulfilled," the President of the Council explained at a press conference EU official, Charles Michel.

TASKS ON THE SUEZ CANAL WILL TAKE WEEKS

The work to clear the blockage in the Suez Canal by the stranded freighter will still take weeks. This situation is of great concern and, as regards oil, the volatility seen throughout this week could continue to increase. Crude and West Texas rose almost 4% this Friday, to 64.28 and 60.88 dollars, respectively, which has benefited Repsol and the group of producers of basic materials.

Analysts are concerned about what is happening in the Suez Canal, but believe it will have a one-time impact on crude. Thus, they consider that what is happening with the demand is more worrying as the cases of Covid-19 increase again in different parts of the world.

OTHER MARKETS

The euro rises in value 0.1% and trades at 1.1774 dollars. Gold rose slightly to $ 1,728, and silver rose 0.25% to $ 25.11.

Bitcoin is up 2% to $ 53,286, and Ethereum is up 2% to $ 1,644.

The yield on the 10-year American bond rises to 1.66% and the yield on the 10-year Spanish bond rises to 0.29%.