Spain Today – Monday 3 June 2024

On Monday, Ponteareas in Pontevedra, Burela in Lugo and Sanlucar de Barrameda in Cadiz all celebrate local holidays.

Fraudulent loan gang dismantled, income from Social Security contributions grew by 7.9% year-on-year, and Spain fines 4 low-cost airlines 150 million euro for abusive hand luggage practices.

Contents (click to jump ahead)

Spanish News Headlines

In a joint operation between the Guardia Civil and the Catalan police, the Mossos d’Esquadra, a criminal organisation has been dismantled that operated mainly in Tarragona, and that obtained money through the fraudulent use of DNI stolen or photographed from third parties, with which they took out online loans and bought high-end mobile phones and other luxury products on the internet.

So far, it is estimated that the approximate total defrauded by this organisation amounts to one million euro with more than 700 victims. It is not ruled out that these figures will increase since many people are not aware that they are on the list of ASNEF debtors. The investigation remains open.

Income from Social Security contributions registered an increase of 7.9% year-on-year in the data accumulated in the first four months of this year, reaching 54,1 billion euro (4 billion more than a year before).

Income corresponding to the Intergenerational Equity Mechanism, in force since January 1, 2023, registered a year-on-year increase of 69.3%, reaching 1,1 billion euro.

If the data from the last year that was not affected by the pandemic, 2019, are taken as a reference, the increase in contributions is 13,3 billion euro (32.5% more).

The Spanish Ministry of Consumer Affairs imposed a fine of 150 million euro on four airlines – Ryanair, Vueling, EasyJet and Volotea – for abusive practices, including charging passengers for hand luggage, following complaints received by different consumer associations. The fine will be borne by the affected airlines.

The Association of Airlines (ALA), which brings together 85% of air traffic in Spain, has frontally rejected the claim of the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumption and Agenda 2030 to prohibit the charging of cabin luggage made by some airlines and to fine this practice disproportionate amounts, as it will harm consumers by suppressing the option of passengers to hire exactly what they need.

To read these articles in full, visit SpainToday.news

Business, Markets and Statistics

Monday will begin with the manufacturing PMI for May in Spain, the UK, Germany, France, Italy, the eurozone as a whole, despite the first reading of the PMIs showing an acceleration compared to the previous month, the leading activity indicator of the industrial sector will foreseeably continue below the expansion level, evidencing the complex scenario in which the Eurozone finds itself.

Plus, the week also starts with new data on the evolution of tourism in Spain. Specifically, the INE publishes the survey of spending and tourist movements at borders for April.

In the UK, the UK Finance household review is published.

Traffic and Travel

Road wise, there´s nothing significant planned this week, until the special operation at the weekend in La Rioja, but remember traffic will be busier at the weekends in tourist spots such as the coastal or mountain areas.

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

Official Websites for Travel Information

• For live traffic reports, visit the DGT traffic map
• For weather warnings, consult AEMET
• DGT Twitter account
• AEMET weather related road information
• Aemet Twitter account
• For flight information, check the AENA airport operator’s website

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