Page 8 - Spain

Is it coming home? England eye Women's World Cup trophy against Spain

The rallying cry It's Coming Home is one game away from reality and the end of England's 57-year drought in global soccer. The World Cup trophy can return this Sunday to the birthplace of soccer for the first time since 1966. But if it happens, the journey back to England will be with the women's national team and not the men's. The Lionesses have roared their way into their first Women's World Cup title game, Sunday against Spain. It is the first all-European final since 2003, when Germany beat Sweden. It has been a magical ride for both teams: England has been on top of the global game since winning the European Championship last summer, and Spain is in its first final less than a year since 15 players quit the team in protest. But England was expected to be here, and all around the world, in pubs and at viewing parties, England supporters have been singing It's Coming Home," the unintentional reminder that the soccer team hasn't won the World Cup since 1966. The men's team was t

Out-of-control wildfire scorches Spain's Canary island, affecting thousands

An out-of-control wildfire on the Spanish Canary island of Tenerife has burned thousands of acres and affected some 7,600 people who are either evacuated or confined, Regional President Fernando Clavijo said Thursday. He said some 250 firefighters and members of the Spanish army are tackling the blaze, located in the north of the island. Clavijo said the fire had a nearly 30-km-long (19-mile) perimeter. This is probably the most complicated blaze we have had on the Canary Islands, if not ever, at least in the last 40 years, Clavijo told reporters. Extreme temperatures in the island, he said, added to specific meteorological conditions caused by the fire that turned the area into a virtual oven. The seven-island archipelago is located off the northwest coast of Africa and southwest of mainland Spain. Spanish authorities said their main goal is to contain the fire and prevent it from reaching more populated areas. The island's main town, Santa Cruz, is 20 km (12 miles) away from the

Spain parl holds crucial vote that could pave way for another leftist govt

Spain's newly elected Parliament meets on Thursday to choose the chamber's speaker and presiding council, a normally routine vote but which this time will be read as a bellwether of a future government. Inconclusive national elections on July 23 left no party with an easy path to cobble together the support needed to lead a government. Parties on the left and right of the spectrum are delicately poised in the fight for power. Acting Prime Minister Pedro Snchez appears to have a slight edge over his conservative and rightwing rivals, but nothing is guaranteed and a new election in the coming months is still a real possibility. Thursday's council vote by the 350 new lawmakers could therefore indicate whether Snchez's Socialists are making headway in building support among smaller parties. These include separatist parties in Catalonia that appear likely to decide both the speaker's vote and the future session to elect a prime minister. Snchez's Socialists, the left-wing Sumar (Joini

Germany and Spain in contest for $4.8 billion Indian submarine deal

Indian officials are currently evaluating competing bids to build six of the vessels in the country, senior Indian officials aware of the developments said, asking not to be named

Spain at risk of political gridlock as conservatives win without majority

Spain appears headed for political gridlock after Sunday's inconclusive national elections left parties on both the right and left without a clear path toward forging a new government. The conservative Popular Party won the elections, but it fell short of its hopes of scoring a much bigger victory and forcing the removal of Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Instead, the party led by candidate Alberto Nunez Feijoo performed below the expectations of most campaign polls. Even though Sanchez's Socialists finished second, they and their allied parties celebrated the outcome as a victory since their combined forces gained slightly more seats than the PP and the far-right. The bloc that could likely support Sanchez totalled 172 seats; the right bloc behind Feijoo, 170. It was a Pyrrhic victory for the Popular Party, which is unable to form a government," said political analyst Vernica Fumanal, adding the conservatives will now have to reach out to the far-right, and even then it wo

Spain votes in general election that could swing country to the right

PM Sanchez called the election early after the left took a drubbing in local elections in May

Spain polls tipped to put far right back in office, first time since Franco

Voters in Spain go to the polls Sunday in an election that could make the country the latest European Union member to swing to the populist right, a shift that would represent a major upheaval after five years under a left-wing government. Here's what you need to know about the vote. WHAT IS AT STAKE? Opinion polls indicate the political right has the edge going into the election, and that raises the possibility a neo-fascist party will be part of Spain's next government. The extreme right has not been in power in Spain since the transition to democracy following the death of former dictator Francisco Franco in 1975. With no party expected to win an absolute majority, the choice for voters is basically between another leftist governing coalition or one between the right and the far right. The right-of-centre Popular Party, the front-runner in the polls, and the extreme right Vox party are on one side. They portray the vote as a chance to end Sanchismo a term the PP uses to sum

Pop star Shakira in trouble as Spain's tax office initiates second probe

Pop star Shakira is facing more trouble from Spain's tax office after a court near Barcelona said Thursday that it had agreed to open an investigation into a second case of alleged tax fraud by the Colombian singer. Shakira is already set to face trial at a date to be determined for allegedly failing to pay 14.5 million euros (USD 13.9 million) in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014. The entertainer has denied any wrongdoing. Now, a Spanish judge has agreed with state prosecutors to probe two possible cases of tax fraud by Shakira from 2018. The court said it had no information on how much money was in question. Both cases are being handled by a court in the town of Esplugues de Llobregat, near Barcelona. The first case that is set to go to trial hinges on where Shakira lived during 2012-14. Prosecutors in Barcelona have alleged the Grammy winner spent more than half of that period in Spain and should have paid taxes in the country, even though her official residence was i

Spain fines Apple, Amazon $218 mn for elbowing out small retailers

Amazon and Apple were fined a total of 194 million euros (USD 218 million) Tuesday for colluding to box out competitors by favouring sales of Apple products directly from the online retail giant, Spain's antitrust watchdog said. Amazon and Apple reached agreements in 2018 that limited the free competition of third-party sellers who hawk Apple goods through Amazon's platform for smaller retailers, according to Spain's National Markets and Competition Commission, which oversees Spanish markets for antitrust violations. "The investigated behaviors could be restricting competition in the sectors of the Internet sale of electronic products, and the provision of marketing services to third-party retailers through online platforms (Marketplace) in Spain, the regulator said. The tech giants also limited the capacity for third parties to advertise Apple products on Amazon, according to Spanish regulators. In addition, the companies are accused of reaching a deal that limited Amazon's ability

Spain's early poll could put far right in power for 1st time since Franco

Spain's general election on Sunday could make the country the latest European Union member swing to the populist right, a shift that would represent a major upheaval after five years under a left-wing government. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called the early election after his Spanish Socialist Workers' Party and its small far-left coalition partner, Unidas Podemos ("United We Can"), took a beating in local and regional elections. The center-right Popular Party emerged from the May 28 elections with the most votes. Polls for the general election have consistently put the PP in first place but likely needing support from the far-right Vox party to form a government. Such a coalition would return a far-right force to the Spanish government for the first time since the country transitioned to democracy following the 1975 death of Gen. Francisco Franco, the dictator who ruled Spain for nearly 40 years. The Popular Party and Vox have agreed to govern together in some 140 cities and tow

Usha Martin arm Espana incorporates wholly owned subsidiary in Spain

Usha Martin International Limited (UMIL) has incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary, Usha Martin Espana, SL, in Spain. Usha Martin Espana, SL will work in the area of distribution, manufacturing, sale and application of metallurgical products, high-performance wire ropes, LRPC strands, wires, pre-stressing accessories, machinery and cables, Usha Martin said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday. "Usha Martin Espana, SL has been formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of Usha Martin International Limited (UMIL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Usha Martin Limited," it said. UMIL has subscribed to the share capital of euros 3,000, with a face value of euro 1 per share. UMIL holds 100 per cent of the paid-up share capital of Usha Martin Espana, SL. Usha Martin Ltd is a leading global manufacturer of wire ropes with manufacturing facilities in Ranchi, Hoshiarpur, Dubai, Bangkok and the UK.

L&T, Spain's Navantia to jointly bid for $5-bn India submarine tender

L&T has so far built more than 65 defence vessels- both in partnership and on its own- including a handful for the Indian Navy and Coast Guard, according to its website

Inflation in Germany reaches 6.8%, while Spanish CPI hits 1.6% YoY in June

Inflation is pushing in different directions in Europe, rising in Germany and falling again in Spain, official figures said Thursday. German consumer prices jumped 6.8 per cent in June from a year earlier, up from May's 6.3 per cent, the state statistics office Destatis said. The figure was boosted in part by a widely used offer of cheap transport tickets last summer, analysts said. The increase in Europe's largest economy comes a day before the release of inflation figures for the entire 20-country area that uses the euro currency. Inflation in the eurozone has been falling from its peak of 10.6 per cent in October, coming in at 6.1 per cent in May. But that is still far above the target of 2 per cent set by the European Central Bank. ECB chief Christine Lagarde has warned inflation is persistent enough to warrant at least one more interest rate hike at the bank's July 27 meeting. Higher interest rates are central banks' chief tool against inflation. Meanwhile, lower food and ene

With record heat, Spain's Catalonia faces perfect wildfire conditions

Surveying the hills covered with near bone-dry pines stretching to the Pyrenees in the distance, Asier Larraaga has reason to be on guard. This part of northeast Spain is, like large swaths of the Mediterranean country, braced for wildfires due to the lethal combination of a prolonged drought, record-high temperatures and increasingly dense woods unable to adapt to a fast-changing climate. Larraaga is one of the top fire analysts for the firefighters of Catalonia charged with safeguarding the region's homes and landscapes. While grateful that some desperately needed rain has finally fallen in recent weeks, he is ready for the worst unless July and August buck Spain's historic trend of being the hottest and driest months of the year. If we have a normal summer and conditions of low humidity combined with high temperatures, then we will see fires that quickly expand beyond our extinction capacity. And for areas where it has not rained in May and this month, we could see these types

Spain has lot to offer in terms of defence trade: Indian ambassador Patnaik

Indian ambassador to Spain Dinesh Patnaik has said that the European country has "a lot to offer" in terms of bilateral trade in defence, start-up and IT ecosystem, and cultural exchange. The two countries share an increasingly important relationship through bilateral exchanges, he said, adding more and more Indian filmmakers are now exploring Spain's scenic locations, the latest being films such as Pathaan and Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar, and India is buying C295 aircraft, submarines and automotive components from Spain. The European country, in turn, procures chemicals, mechanical, engineering and electrical equipments from India, he said. "In the last one-and-a-half years, our trade has increased by about 30 per cent. We have a surplus of USD 4 billion with them. With very few countries we have such large surpluses, especially when it is non-petroleum products. But there is a lot more that can be done. This is just the tip of the iceberg," Patnaik told PTI in an interview. Speaking o

Crucial that India takes lead in making tourism more sustainable: Official

Director General for the Ministry of Tourism from Spain, Felix De Paz, said that it is important for the world that India takes the lead in terms of making tourism more sustainable

Heat scorches Europe as southern Spain temp to reach 45 deg C this month

The mercury in Seville, in southern Spain, is forecast to peak near 45C (113F) later this month, data compiled by Bloomberg show

F-18 fighter jet crashes at Zaragoza airbase, pilot ejects successfully

An F-18 fighter jet crashed at an airbase in the Spanish city of Zaragoza but the pilot ejected successfully, the Spanish defense ministry said on Saturday. The aircraft landed within the perimeter of the base, the defense ministry said on Twitter. The base, which lies about 10 miles (16 kilometers) outside the city, belongs to the Spanish Air and Space Force. Videos posted on social media showed a plane in flames falling towards the ground. The pilot was already in hospital and his life was not in danger, the air force said. Spain's public news agency EFE said the F-18 was training for a flying exhibition when the incident occurred. The Guardia Civil told The Associated Press that one of its patrols was the first to reach the pilot, who fell outside the exterior fence surrounding the airbase. According to the Guardia Civil, the pilot suffered injuries to his legs, apparently because he ejected with a parachute from a low altitude. He was evacuated to hospital in a helicopter.

France preferred destination for Indians, sees max visa rejections: Report

At 20.12%, France has the highest visa rejection rate and 27,681 applications were rejected, the report suggests. It was followed by Spain with 18.5% or 14,852 visas rejected

India U-17 Football men's team gears up to face Real Madrid in Spain

The India U-17 men's team is set to face Real Madrid U-17s, at the Ciudad Deportiva del Real Madrid in Madrid on Wednesday in their fourth preparatory game in Spain