After a years of steep deterioration, Uruguay has managed to partially recover some of the ground lost after a historic fall in productivity.  Despite this, a person working in Uruguay today reaches an average productivity slightly above 40% of the level they would achieve working in an advanced economy.  How is this possible?  What can be done?  This paper sets out a potential explanation and suggests a line of action for further progress.

The European Central Bank (ECB) yesterday has announced the outcome of the final auction of TLTRO-2 (targeted long-term refinancing operations).  These long-term financing operations aim to stimulate lending in the euro zone. The demand for additional liquidity has reached 233.47 billion euros, far above the amount from previous auctions and market expectations.

On Mar. 15, the Federal Reserve, the central bank of the United States, announced it was raising its interim benchmark interest rate by a quarter point (commonly referred to as 25 basis points), helping to stabilize the economy and influence the amount of interest increase banks and other institutions could apply to overnight lending money.

At BBVA Momentum, entrepreneurs go back to school, but this time in an innovative way that fits in their fast-paced lifestyle. Technology is the new edition’s biggest ally, allowing participants to refresh their knowledge, acquire new skills and interact with each other.

BBVA’s strategy to curb its exposure in the real estate market continues to bear fruit. The Group announced the sale of a 14 office-building portfolio in Spain, codenamed Project Boston.

The Observatorio Empresarial contra la Pobreza (Business Observatory to Combat Poverty), with the support of BBVA, has published a report entitled The road to youth employment. What can businesses do. The report addresses the problem of youth unemployment and its consequences from a number of angles.

BBVA Compass economists lay out their reasons for raising their estimate to three rate hikes in 2017 in their latest Fed Watch report, pointing to the underlying strength of the economy and a series of hawkish speeches by key Federal Open Market Committee members.

The key to have the best professional team requires attracting, training and retaining talent. Aware of this, BBVA Corporate & Investment Banking, BBVA’s wholesale banking area, is announcing the fifth edition of its Graduate Training Programme, aiming at recruiting and developing the best junior talent available.

Mario Draghi did not announce any new changes in monetary policy at Thursday’s press conference, but the latest European Central Bank (ECB) meeting did lead to some updates. On the one hand, the ECB is more optimistic about economic growth. On the other, it is raising its 2017 inflation forecast to 1.7% (from 1.3% in December) due to growing energy prices, but it barely changed its core inflation projection. And last, but not least, it added some nuances to its wording, which could be the prelude to changes in its monetary policy,  BBVA Research notes in its ECB Watch report.

While ISIS lost ground in Syria and Iraq, Al-Qaeda resumed its offensive operations. Meanwhile, tensions between Russia and Ukraine stabilized after last month’s sharp conflict escalation. Geopolitical tensions in China could intensify as uncertainties regarding the US policy stance in the region remained and North Korea remains testing.

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