BUSINESS NEWS SHORTS ...
Inditex to close out year with 5,000 shops around the world
Spanish fashion company Inditex will close out the year with 5,000 establishments, following the 245 shops to be opened in the second half of the year: 40% more than in the first half, according to calculations by Spanish newspaper El Economista.
The Spanish multinational opened 173 establishments in the first half of its financial year, for a total of 4,780 premises in a total of 77 countries. The idea now is to accelerate the expected plan and open, in the second half of the financial year, which closes in February 2011, around 245 shops; that is, 41% more than those opened in the previous six months.
Inditex opens between one and three shops a day around the world, making it one of the most powerful firms on the international scene.
Iberia and British Airways shareholders approve merger
Iberia and British Airways shareholders have given the green light to the merger between the two companies. The general shareholders’ meetings of both companies were held in Madrid and London, respectively, and voted in favor of the operation, which will give rise to one of the most powerful groups in the air sector.
According to Iberia, this was the final requirement needed to carry out the merger. A series of purely formal administrative procedures still have to be completed from now until International Airlines Group shares start to be listed at the end of January.
The airlines are confident they will obtain annual synergies of €400 million from the fifth year of the merger onwards. IAG will be a Spanish company with fiscal residence in Spain, and most of the meetings of its board of directors and all its shareholders meetings will be held in Madrid. Its financial and operational base will be in London.
Gas Natural Fenosa to invest 85 million in Mexico in 2011
The energy company Gas Natural Fenosa is to invest €85 million in energy projects in Mexico during 2011. The majority of the investment will be used to expand the gas distribution network, according to a statement by the company.
Indeed, some 45 million will be allocated to expanding the existing 16,350 kilometers of distribution network that the company already has. The group hopes to attract 85,000 new natural gas clients during the coming year and estimates a potential market in the North American country of around 3.5 million clients.
The energy multinational is the current market leader in the country with 1.2 million clients. Natural gas is one of the energy sources with the best growth prospects in Mexico, according to a report by Gas Natural Fenosa, which operates in eight states in the country. Between January and September this year sales of natural gas in Mexico totaled 30,022 gigawatt hours (GWh), an increase of 9.4% compared to the same period in 2009. The energy multinational also has 2,270 megawatts (MW) of electricity generation power, following the start-up of the El Norte Durango combined-cycle power plant in August, which has a 450 MW capacity.
Gas Natural Fenosa’s Mexican subsidiary will continue to participate in tenders by the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE) for independent generation plants and the company continues to examine opportunities for wind development in the country. Its power stations in Mexico generated 12,207 GWh of power between January and September, an increase of 1.8% compared to the same period the previous year.
Online exports of Spanish products rise by 10%
Exports of Spanish products carried out using eCommerce exceeded €176 million (up by 10.5%) in the first nine months of 2010, according to a recent study by the Telecommunications Market Commission.
This report, presented at Expopyme 2010, the Fifth Professional Trade Fair of Products and Services for SMEs, shows that 77% of Spanish overseas sales were made to the European Union, while 7.7% were purchases made from the United States, and 5% from Latin America.
In total, revenue from electronic channels over this period in Spain reached €1.67 billion, with the business areas reporting the greatest volume of electronic transactions being air transport (14.9%), travel agencies and tour operators (8.2%), direct marketing (7.5%), terrestrial travel (6.7%), betting and gaming (6.3%), artistic, sporting and recreational spectacles (5.7%), legal services, accounting and management (4.3%), education (2.6%), computers and IT programs (2.5%), and fashion (2.5%).