Spain Today – Wednesday 24 January 2024

Jan 24, 2024

6 Mins Read

Coming up in Spain Today, the FITUR tourism event starts in Madrid featuring 9,000 companies from the tourism sector, new European legislation will penalise those who pay invoices late, 2024 marks almond season set to start early resulting in more losses for farmers, and ceramics workers will hold a demonstration this evening.

In terms of European macroeconomic references, today we will have the publication of the advance PMIs. This being a first approximation to the evolution of the manufacturing and services sector at the beginning of a year that will be relevant to clear up any pending doubts from the end of last year.

A little reminder for those still eligible to vote in the European elections that time is running out to confirm your eligibility, you must do so before the end of the month, ideally, so if there is any doubt, check. If you need more information, your local town hall should be able to help, as is the case, for example, in Torrevieja, where the International Residents Department, led by Councillor Gitte Lund Thomsen, have produced an informative leaflet which you can pick up from the town hall.

Contents (click to jump ahead)

Spanish News Headlines

The King will be counting on another tourism boost for the country, following last year´s record figures, as he and the Queen inaugurate the 44th edition of the international tourism fair, Fitur, today, which will be open initially to tourism sector affiliates, and then to the public at weekend, taking place from today until Sunday. With an anticipated impact on Madrid of 430 million euro, the international tourism event will feature more than 9,000 companies from 152 countries, 20 more than last year. 806 exhibitors are expected to attend, a figure that increases by 7% compared to 2023.

The Provincial Court of Ciudad Real will judge a man, born in the Dominican Republic, and his romantic partner, of Romanian nationality, both with criminal records, for distributing cocaine from their home, located in Ciudad Real capital. Following an investigation, a search of their home revealed almost 45 grams of cocaine inside and distributed in different wrappers, in addition to 6,945 euro in cash. The Prosecutor’s Office is requesting a five-year prison sentence for the man as a repeat offender, and three years and six months in prison for his partner.

New European legislation against late payment is “realistic” and takes into account the special vulnerability of self-employed workers and small businesses, who, in a conference to discuss and add proposals to the new legislation, representatives of both groups applauded increasing the penalties for those who don´t pay invoices in a timely manner. As Rebeca Torró, Secretary of State for Industry, assessed during the conference, it is necessary to change the European regulatory framework to reduce late payments and non-payment in SMEs. “Working on European regulations will allow us to establish common rules of the game, so that companies can improve their competitiveness, something crucial so that SMEs have greater liquidity and cash flow forecasts, and can increase their competitiveness,” she stated.

As the global destruction of the planet continues, locally, in Spain, 2024 has started once again with unseasonal temperatures, and even so early in the year, the next foodstuff to fall victim to the changing climate is almonds. Although blossoming in the south of the country has been getting earlier, this year it is already occurring in the centre and north of the peninsula, and as we have yet to get through the bad weather of spring, crops may be lost. Whereas that might be the worst-case scenario, the best case is early harvesting, that could lead to a reduction in the crop, and a subsequent loss of earnings, and even the harvest that does survive can result in poorer quality product, which again, can result in financial losses.

The UGT union called a demonstration in the city of Castellón for this evening, inviting as many people to participate as possible, to support their fight for a ceramics agreement that does not impoverish the workers in the sector and for a future with guarantees. One of the biggest problems the sector has faced in recent years in the increase in the price of gas, and yet, despite this, according to the union, some companies have still maintained their workforce but at considerable detriment to their businesses, but others have closed down with the loss of thousands of jobs.

To read these articles in full, visit SpainToday.news

Things to Do Today

The Pascual Flores pilot boat is open for visitors in Torrevieja on Wednesdays through to Sundays until 29 January.

In the Casa de Cultura in Guardamar del Segura a collective exhibition featuring “new perspectives” is on in the same venue until February 4.

For more local events, pick up The Leader newspaper every Monday, and This is Torrevieja for Torrevieja events.

Local Markets

Midweek markets can be found today at Guardamar del Segura, La Mata (Torrevieja), San Isidro, and San Miguel de Salinas.

The roads will of course be busy around those locations.

Traffic and Travel

Road wise, there´s nothing significant planned but remember that if you are venturing into the mountain areas, which in some cases might be less than an hour from the sunny coast, snow chains should be a consideration to avoid getting stranded.

The Guardia Civil are continuing their checks on school buses.

For information and updates about driving in Spain, visit N332.es

Flight wise, there are some 20,900 flights scheduled across Europe and although weather conditions have eased, the wind is still expected to pose an issue at some UK airports, Heathrow once again being particularly problematic at times with occasional bumpy landings and go-arounds possible.

Runway work at Rome airport might poses restrictions, but that might also be eased by Air Traffic Controllers being on strike in parts of Italy. Although the direct impact on Spain should be minimal, there could be repercussions throughout the day.

At Madrid, the flight planning computer is taking some time off work today, but the downtime is scheduled for overnight tonight, so hopefully it won´t have an impact, assuming it restarts okay.

Weather

Today we expect high pressure over southern Europe and ridging into the west and central France.

Low pressure over Scandinavia with associated moderate to strong winds affecting the UK, Benelux, Germany, Poland, Scandinavia and Baltic States.

On This Day

1931, the state of war is lifted in Spain, with the exception of Huesca and Madrid.

1976, Spain and the United States sign the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation.

1977, on Calle Atocha in Madrid, during the democratic transition, a far-right group murders five labour lawyers from the CCOO, Comisiones Obreras. The event would be known in history as the Atocha Massacre. A statue is now in place marking the event.

2008, the Spanish stock market, the IBEX-35, closed with the biggest rise in history, gaining 6.95%.

2009, in Seville, in one of the most drawn-out and tragic cases in modern true crimes, 17-year-old Marta del Castillo is murdered.

Video of the Day

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The post Spain Today – Wednesday 24 January 2024 first appeared on Mark Nolan´s Podcast.