The Chairman of CaixaBank, José Ignacio Goirigolzarri, today joined the warnings from the Bank of Spain and the Cercle d’Economia about the low growth of the economy in per inhabitant terms in the last 15 years. The banker recalled at the New Economy Forum colloquium in Madrid -broadcast over the internet- that since 2008 GDP per inhabitant in Spain has only grown by 1.5%, compared to that of Portugal, which has grown by more than 10%. In addition, in this period the Spanish economy has moved away from Europe in terms of GDP per capita.
Goirigolzarri has pointed out the need to carry out reforms to boost productivity. On the other hand, his short-term vision is much more optimistic because “GDP has performed better than expected.” And he has especially highlighted that the increase in GDP is not supported by consumption but by “foreign trade and exports”. He also wanted to highlight “the good behavior of the labor market” and has pointed out that there are half a million more employees than before the pandemic, although the number of hours worked has not recovered. The president of CaixaBank did want to warn of the problems implied by high inflation both in Spain and in Europe.
In relation to the banking union, Goirigolzarri has asked today, as he has already done in other conferences, the need to carry out the implementation of the deposit guarantee fund. In his opinion, only in this way would sovereign risk or country risk be separated from bank risk.
Asked about the operation of the merger between Bankia and CaixaBank, the banker has indicated that it has been a success. Regarding the operation itself, Goirigolzarri has assured that there was only a “serious negotiation” of the merger that was the one that led to the integration of the two entities.
The banker wanted to end his speech by sending a message of optimism about the current situation and asked to avoid criticism or negative views.
