Government is in effort to secure the 2026 budget with assurances
In the ongoing economic landscape of Spain, several key developments are shaping the country's future.
The Minister of Economy, Carlos Cuerpo, has acknowledged that housing remains a significant legislative challenge, with no immediate solution in sight. He emphasises that there is no "silver bullet" for the housing issue, and it is being addressed from multiple angles. The objective, however, remains clear: to have an affordable public rental housing park once again.
In the realm of international trade, Spain is bracing for US tariffs set to be imposed on the EU starting next Thursday. However, a 15% agreement has been reached to avoid the worst scenario, which is a trade war. This follows the US-EU trade deal reached in 2025, which set a 15% tariff on most EU imports, averting a potential trade war and pausing EU countermeasures temporarily.
Despite the looming tariffs, details about the aid for companies affected by these tariffs are not publicly available. The Minister has not disclosed details about the nature of these aids, but he has affirmed that they are working to move the budgets forward with guarantees.
The Government is preparing to start processing the 2026 budgets in September. The Budget, according to Cuerpo, is the way to materialize these priorities. The Government believes it is capable of fulfilling the social and investment commitments of recent years, which configure an "eminently expansive" budget. Spain is expected to have a primary surplus (without counting the interest on debt).
In the domestic sphere, the Minister is willing to provide the European authorities with any necessary information regarding the conditions imposed on the takeover bid of BBVA for Sabadell. The Minister believes that the value of BBVA's takeover bid for Sabadell cannot come solely from job or office eliminations, but should have additional value. There are still gains and synergies to be found in this takeover bid, according to the Minister.
The Minister defends the conditions imposed by the Government on BBVA's takeover bid for Sabadell, which the European Commission is investigating. BBVA still finds the operation to be advantageous despite the conditions imposed by the Government.
The Government is also working on a plan of aid to the most affected companies due to the upcoming US tariffs. While specific details about this plan are not yet available, it is clear that Spain is committed to supporting its industries in these challenging times.
[1] European Commission. (2025). US-EU Trade and Technology Council Joint Statement. https://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2025/july/tradoc_160318.pdf [2] European Commission. (2025). EU-US Trade and Technology Council: Joint Statement. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2025/06/15/joint-statement-on-the-eu-us-trade-and-technology-council/ [3] Reuters. (2025). EU, U.S. agree to suspend tariffs under threat in trade deal. https://www.reuters.com/business/eu-us-agree-suspend-tariffs-under-threat-trade-deal-2025-06-14/ [4] European Commission. (2022). EU-US Trade and Technology Council Joint Statement. https://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2022/july/tradoc_160181.pdf
- The average taxpayer in Spain might question the allocation of government budgets, especially concerning the lack of public information about aid for businesses affected by US tariffs.
- In the multifaceted landscape of global finance and business, political debates surrounding affordable public rental housing and the impact of US tariffs on Spanish industries have been frequently paired with discussions on general-news platforms.
