In this episode our host Carlos Urabayen talks to Alice Faibishenko from Funcas to discuss the profound shifts in global trade and investment since the pandemic. The conversation delves into the concept of re-globalization, highlighting the challenges and opportunities faced by the European Union amidst weakening export markets and changing foreign…

In this episode, we delve into the complexities of the European Union budget with insights from Professor Iain Begg of the London School of Economics and Political Science and Raymond Torres, Director of Funcas Europe. We explore the historical context, current challenges, and potential reforms needed to make the EU budget more flexible and respons…

Carlos Carnicero Urabayen spoke with Hans Dubois, a Senior Research Manager at Eurofound, about the pressing issue of housing affordability in Europe. The discussion covered the factors driving unaffordable housing, the impact on different demographic groups, particularly young people, and the effectiveness of various policy measures being implemen…

There is a growing resilience in the Spanish labor force, highlighting evolution from the historical trends of high unemployment, particularly during times of economic uncertainty. In this podcast we discuss this topic with Alice Faibishenko, Senior Advisor at Funcas. You can access the latest SEFO report from Funcas here.…

In this new episode hosted by Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, delved into the intricate dynamics of the global geopolitical landscape, the rise of economic nationalism and Europe's strategic positioning amidst the assertive manoeuvres of superpowers like the United States and China. Tor…

In this episode Carlos Carnicero Urabayen interviews Patricia Sánchez Juanino to learn about current trade trends inside and outside the European Union.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen for Funcas

In this episode Alice Faibishenko, Senior Advisor at Funcas, talks to our host Carlos Carnicero Urabayen about key aspects affecting the Spanish economy in 2024. The conversation is based on several of the articles featured in the latest SEFO report.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

In this episode we analyze the new fiscal rules recently agreed by EU policymakers and what will be their impact on Europe's economy in the medium and long term. We are joined by Vinzenz Ziesemer, Director at the Institute voor Publieke Economie and Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director. The show is hosted by Carlos Carnicero Urabayen.…

In today's show we analyse what are the key lessons learned for the EU economy in 2023. Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, together with Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director in conversation with Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, Future is Blue host.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

In our new podcast episode we discuss the latest SEFO publication by Funcas covering Spain's economic outlook, together with Alice Faibishenko, Senior Advisor at Funcas.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

In this podcast show Carlos Carnicero Urabayen talks to Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, to analyse the situation regarding public deficits and debt after the pandemic, the Ukraine war and the energy crisis.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, shares great insights about the Commission investigation into Chinese state subsidies affecting cars imported to Europe. Carlos Carnicero Urabayen is Future is Blue host.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen - Funcas

In today's new podcast episode we feature Alice Faibishenko, Senior Advisor at Funcas, to analyse the implications of high interest rates for financial institutions, public bodies and other actors. This subject is covered in the latest SEFO report by Funcas that you can access here.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

In our new podcast show we analyse what's behind China's debt mounting debt and the risk this represents for the world economy. Our host, Carlos Carnicero Urabayen talks to Alicia García Herrero, Chief Economist for Asia Pacific at Natixis, a French multinational financial services firm, and Senior Fellow at Bruegel think tank, and Raymond Torres, …

In today's show, we cover the most pressing economic topics on the EU's agenda: Is Europe heading towards a recession along with persistent inflation –or stagflation in light of the recent decision of the ECB to raise interest rates? What could be a realistic fiscal scenario for the EU? The EIA is predicting a turn in energy demand, consistent with…

Is the German economy again the sick man of Europe, as it was once labelled back in the late 90s? We take a look at the current economic challenges of Germany together with Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, and Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen - Funcas

In this Future is Blue podcast episode, we cover the following questions about AI and the financial sector: How AI is being adopted by the financial sector, particularly in Europe. What are some of the major applications of AI within financial services to date? Key takeaways from all this as we look to the future of AI in banking? You can access he…

The impact of Artificial Intelligence on labor markets is a complex topic. While AI has the potential to create new opportunities and increase productivity, it also raises real concerns about job displacement and changing workforce dynamics. To cover this subject we've been joined by Maria Jepsen, Deputy Director at Eurofound, the European Foundati…

Joaquin Almunia, who’s chairman of the CEPS think tank Board and former European commissioner for economic and monetary affairs and former Vice president of the European Commission, discusses how the EU can be ready to compete in a world dominated by a global economic race between the US and China. Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director joins the d…

In this show our host Carlos Carnicero Urabayen talks to Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, and Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, about how can Europe implement the China policy it needs for a successful relationship with Asia's superpower.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen for Funcas

In our new podcast episode Alice Faibishenko, Senior Advisor at Funcas, presents some of the key insights that are included in the latest SEFO report by Funcas, touching on the global economic outlook, how Spain is dealing with inflation and what segments of the population are more exposed to the effects of inflation. The show is presented by Carlo…

Jan Eeckhout, ICREA research professor of Economics at UPF Barcelona, talks to Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, Future is Blue host, about how to correctly measure inflation in the Eurozone and how to get it under control.By Funcas Europe - Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

Sander Tordoir, Senior Economist at the Centre for European Reform, discusses with Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, how the ECB and policymakers can get inflation under control in the eurozone. The show is hosted by Carlos Carnicero Urabayen.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen for Funcas

Alice Faibishenko, Senior advisor at Funcas, discusses with Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, how rising interest rates are impacting banks, the mortgage market, and the Spanish labor market, among other issues.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

In today's show we analyze the banking stress we've seen over the last couple of weeks on both sides of the Atlantic. Today's guests are Iain Begg, Professor at LSE and Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director. The host is Carlos Carnicero Urabayen. We explore questions such as: - Are banks better prepared to cope with a financial crisis compared to …

Lourdes Maldonado, Gail and Rob Cañizares Director at the Emerging Markets Institute in Cornell University, together with Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, analyse the implications of the IRA programme in the US and its repercussions for the European industry. The show is hosted by Carlos Carnicero Urabayen…

Alice Faibishenko, Senior Adviser at Funcas, shares some of the key insights that are included in the latest SEFO report, covering topics such as the impact of record spikes in interest rates and the challenges for banks financing. The content of the report is available here.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

In today's podcast, the first of a series jointly authored by Funcas Europe and the Centre for European Reform, we cover the following key aspects of the IMFs latest report: - Why is the world economy doing better than expected? - What's the likely course of monetary policy in Europe in 2023? - What are the key risks that can challenge the IMF's ou…

In our chat we cover these topics: - How realistic it is to see a third of the world entering recession in 2023 - What's the key forecast for Europe's economy in 2023 - Whether or not inflation is irreversibly going down in the eurozone - The energy crisis - The impact of the end of the zero covid policy in China…

In our conversation, we touch on these topics: - The overall situation in the markets in 2022 - Are there some sectors that are faring better? - Interest rates rise and banks’ profitability - Recent dynamics in the Spanish banking sector - Spanish banks and the factor of non-performing loans To discover key insights in all these questions take a lo…

In this podcast episode we analyse the key economic challenges that the new Italian government has to deal with. We are joined by Prof. Giorgia Giovannetti, Vice President for International Relations at Firenze University, Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director. Future is blue host Carlos Carnicero Urabayen presents this podcast.…

In this new episode Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, talks with Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, Future is blue host, about the recent global trends pointing towards a deglobalisation process: Coronavirus lockdowns, the Chinese zero Covid policy, the war in Ukraine and other factors disrupting global supply chains.…

In our episode Carlos Carnicero Urabayen interviews Francesco Sassi, Researcher specialized in Energy, Geopolitics, and Markets at RIE think tank in Bologna, Italy, to analyse how different EU Member States are dealing with the energy crisis.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

These are the specific questions that we cover in today's show: 1. What are the latest EU decisions or announcements concerning energy markets? 2. To what extent will these measures appease inflationary pressures? 3. Is a recession in the EU unavoidable, in light of the trends in gas markets? 4. What are the key areas where further progress is need…

In our episode we cover inflation, Europe's plans to cope with gas scarcity, the reform of the electricity system in Europe and the elections in Italy.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

You can access here the Funcas latest SEFO report with key insights on topics such as the ECB policy dilemmas and the state of the Spanish economy and its banks, among other topics.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

Raymond Torres analyses the latest decisions by the European Central Bank, including the 0.5% increase in interest rates and the announcement of the TPI mechanism to prevent another Eurozone debt crisis. Carlos Carnicero Urabayen hosts the discussion.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

Carlos Carnicero Urabayen interviews Judit Montoriol Garriga, Lead economist at CaixaBank Research to talk about the current situation of the housing market and the risks that another recession may bring.By Funcas Europe - Agenda Pública

Iain Begg has recently published Stagflation: the return of an unwelcome monster In our conversation we cover the drivers of the current economic situation and we analyse why it is so difficult for policymakers to get the right answer when it comes to dealing with stagflation. We also touch on Europe's energy dependence from Russia and how the gree…

Ukraine is a major exporter of agricultural products, especially sunflower oil and wheat, but, due to the war, key export routes, through the country’s Black Sea ports, are now blocked because of a de-facto Russian naval blockade. This is driving prices up for grain and cooking oil, making imports less affordable in poorer countries and contributin…

The discussion with Alice Faibishenko is based on the latest SEFO report by Funcas, accessible in this link. The chapter about State guarantees and latent non-performance is available here.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

A couple of months ago the European Commission announced the EU Chips Act, an initiative putting together 11 billions of public funds for the research, design and manufacture of semiconductors. The goal is to mobilise a total of 43 billion euros of public and private investment until 2030. To discuss this crucial subject, we are joined in this podc…

In this new episode we take a look at the following questions: - Is the economic pain manageable for Russia as long as oil and gas stays out of this economic war? - What would be the implications for both Russia and European economies if oil and gas are included in the sanctions mix? - Is recession in Europe a real risk as the war's end is not in s…

In this episode, we cover these questions: Can Europe afford to implement an energy embargo against Russia?, What are Russia's options to retaliate economically against the West? Will China step in and aid financially its Russian ally? Would it make a difference to include other Russian banks in the SWIFT ban? Don't miss Zach Meyers new paper: The …

In this episode we discuss topics such as Europe’s dependency on Russian gas, the economic consequences of sanctions on Russia for European economies and the implications of the ongoing crisis on Europe’s energy transition plans.By Carlos Carnicero Urabayen

Is the recovery strong enough? Are the EU Next Generation programs robust enough to keep the recovery momentum? How concerning is inflation? To get some answers we are joined by Jean Pisani-Ferry, Tommaso Padoa Shioppa chair of the European University Institute and Senior Fellow at Bruegel think tank, and Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director.…

After an expansion of 5.5% in 2021, driven mostly by consumer spending a spike in investment and trade in goods above pre pandemic levels, global output is projected to grow by only 4% in 2022 and 3.5% in 2023. There are a number of concerning factors for policymakers, such as the spread of new variants, persistent labour market and supply chain ch…

How can we reconcile the need of increasing green public investment in the EU while consolidating public deficits after the pandemic? Don't miss our discussion featuring Guntram B. Wolff, Director of Bruegel think tank, Raymond Torres, Funcas Europe Director, and Carlos Carnicero Urabayen, Future is blue host.…

We continue our debate about the need for the EU to equip itself with new fiscal rules. A new pact is needed to preserve recovery, gradually consolidate public deficits and protect public investment, particularly green investment. Paul De Grauwe, John Paulson Chair in European Political Economy at the London School of Economics joins this conversat…

The current rules were born in the 90s and, in a nutshell, they mandate Member States to keep public debt below 60% and public deficits below 3% of GDP. Fiscal rules were suspended last year so that Member States had fiscal margin to fight an unprecedented crisis. Now everyone seems to agree that we need a new framework. In this episode we cover wh…