Multilateralismo y desarrollo en la cooperación española

Depto. de Relaciones Internacionales e Historia GlobalFac. de Ciencias Políticas y SociologíaTRUEpu

La evolución de la inversión directa española en América Latina

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The balance of payments and international investment position of Spain in 2017

Artículo de revistaAccording to the balance of payments (BoP) statistics, the Spanish economy once again became a net lender in 2017, despite the rise in oil prices and the strength of domestic demand. Factors that are foreseeably temporary, such as low interest rates, and other longterm factors, mainly relating to the increase in the number of exporting firms and the gains in competitiveness accumulated in recent years, contributed to this. The Spanish economy’s negative net International Investment Position (IIP), in terms of GDP, declined again for the third consecutive year (to 80.8%), since Spain’s lending position and the expansion of GDP offset the negative impact of valuation effects and other adjustments on the net II

The balance of payments and international investment position of Spain in 2020

Artículo de revistaIn 2020, the Spanish economy recorded net lending of 1.1% of GDP, significantly below the previous year’s level of 2.5%. This decline essentially reflects the impact of the health crisis on travel credits, which contracted sharply, owing to the restrictions on international mobility and on activity in accommodation and food and travel services to contain the pandemic. The widening of the secondary income deficit also contributed to the decline in net lending, albeit to a much lesser extent. These developments offset the improvement in the other components, which was particularly notable in the goods and primary income balances. Cross-border financial transactions were strongly influenced by the increase in the volume of Eurosystem asset purchases, as reflected by a large surplus on the financial account of resident sectors, excluding the Banco de España. By contrast, the financial transactions of the Banco de España with the rest of the world showed a large increase in its liabilities. Spain’s negative net international investment position increased to 84.3% of GDP, essentially as a result of the sharp fall in GDP and the decline in the value of external financial assets owing to the appreciation of the euro. Finally, in terms of GDP, the nation’s gross external debt stood at all-time highs (199.4%) owing to the contraction in economic activity and the assumption of new liabilities, in particular by the Banco de España, given the increase in its positions vis-à-vis the Eurosystem as a result of the implementation of the asset purchase programmes

El posicionamiento exterior de la economía española

En este trabajo se analiza el posicionamiento económico de España en el exterior, mediante la elaboración de un indicador sintético que toma en consideración los intercambios comerciales (bienes, servicios y turismo) y las posiciones de inversión extranjera directa, agregados a través de un análisis de componentes principales. Se examina la evolución del posicionamiento a lo largo del tiempo y se compara con el de algunos de nuestros principales socios económicos y con un agregado mundial. Los resultados muestran que España está posicionada principalmente en los países desarrollados de nuestro entorno geográfico más próximo. Considerando las cuatro vertientes citadas, el Reino Unido es el país que tiene el peso más elevado en el posicionamiento exterior de España, por delante de Francia, que, sin embargo, es nuestro socio más importante en términos de exportaciones. Las economías de mercados emergentes tienen, en conjunto, un peso inferior al que poseen en el agregado mundial de referencia. La excepción es América Latina, donde la importante presencia española, basada en la inversión directa, supera al peso de esta región en el agregado mundial. Además, aunque en los últimos años la orientación exterior de España hacia las economías emergentes se ha incrementado, estas economías han ganado todavía más peso a escala mundial. El posicionamiento comparativamente reducido en mercados emergentes puede limitar, en principio, la capacidad de España para aprovechar las tendencias más dinámicas de crecimiento global —focalizadas en algunos de estos países, fundamentalmente en Asia—, aunque esto dependerá también de la especialización exportadora de nuestro país y de los niveles de renta de los países más dinámicos, que determinarán el tipo de bienes que demanden, aspectos que no se analizan en el presente documentoCabe señalar que, cuando se introducen en el análisis consideraciones de riesgo, los resultados anteriores quedan matizados, dado que las economías emergentes presentan, en general, niveles de riesgo más elevados. No obstante, también las diferencias entre economías emergentes y avanzadas a este respecto se han acortado significativamente en los últimos añosIn this paper we analyze the external economic positioning of Spain by developing a composite indicator (IPEX). This index takes into account external trade in goods and services, and tourism revenues, as well as foreign direct investment (FDI) assets, and is built up through a principal components analysis. We examine the evolution over time of the IPEX and compare it with the IPEX of some of Spain’s major economic partners and with a world aggregate. The results show that Spain is positioned mainly in developed countries which are geographically close, such as the United Kingdom, the country with the highest weight in the Spanish IPEX, ahead of France, our most important trading partner. The emerging market economies have, overall, a lower weight than in the world aggregate, with the exception of Latin America, due to Spanish FDI assets in the region. Moreover, in recent years the weight of emerging economies in Spain’s external positioning has increased, although at a slower pace than in the world aggregate. The comparatively low positioning in emerging markets may limit, in principle, Spain’s ability to take advantage of the most dynamic global growth trends in some of these countries, located mainly in Asia. However, when we introduce risk considerations into the analysis, the above-mentioned results are qualified, since emerging economies have generally higher risk level

La Balanza de pagos y la posición de inversión internacional de España en 2020

Artículo de revistaLa economía española presentó, en 2020, una capacidad de financiación del 1,1 % del PIB, sensiblemente inferior a la del año previo, cuando se situó en el 2,5 %. Este descenso reflejó, fundamentalmente, el impacto de la crisis sanitaria sobre los ingresos turísticos, que se contrajeron fuertemente, afectados por las restricciones a la movilidad internacional y a la actividad en los servicios de hostelería y turismo introducidas para contener la expansión de la pandemia. La ampliación del déficit de rentas secundarias también contribuyó al deterioro de la capacidad de financiación, aunque en mucha menor medida. Estos desarrollos contrarrestaron la mejora del resto de los componentes, que fue particularmente destacada en las balanzas de bienes y de rentas primarias. Por su parte, la evolución de las operaciones financieras con el exterior ha estado muy condicionada por el aumento del volumen de compras de activos del Eurosistema, que se ha reflejado en un elevado saldo positivo de la cuenta financiera de los sectores residentes, excluyendo el Banco de España. Por el contrario, las operaciones financieras de este último frente al resto del mundo reflejaron un abultado incremento de sus pasivos. El saldo deudor de la Posición de Inversión Internacional neta de España se incrementó hasta el 84,3 % del PIB, como resultado fundamentalmente de la intensa caída del PIB y de la disminución del valor de los activos financieros exteriores debido a la apreciación del euro. Por último, la deuda externa bruta de la nación se situó en máximos históricos en términos de PIB (199,4 %) debido a la contracción de la actividad económica y a la asunción de nuevos pasivos, particularmente por parte del Banco de España, en el contexto de un aumento de las posiciones de esta institución frente al Eurosistema, como resultado de la aplicación de sus programas de compras de activos

Analysis of bacterial communities of infected primary teeth in a Mexican population

The objective of this study was to describe the bacterial communities associated with pediatric patients with endodontic infections of temporal teeth by targeting the 16S rRNA gene using pyrosequencing. Microbiological samples were obtained from the lower primary molars of thirteen 13 pediatric patients with dental infections. An aspiration method for microbiological sampling was used. The identification of microbiota employing the pyrosequencing method by targeting the 16S gene was performed. Ribosomal 16S RNA gene sequences were amplified, obtaining a total of 16,182 sequences from 13 primary infected molars (13 different individuals) by pyrosequencing. Bacteroidetes phyla (35.15%) were the most abundant followed by Firmicutes (33.3%) and Fusobacteria (10.05%); the presence of specific pathogenic bacteria was determined as well. The infected root canal of primary teeth contains a high diversity of anaerobic bacteria, and Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Fusobacteria phyla were the most abundant; Prevotella and Streptococcus genera were the most prevalent

Escuela y museos como recursos en proyectos artísticos de enseñanzaaprendizaje

El uso de recursos y nuevas metodologías normalmente inusuales dentro del proceso de enseñanza-aprendizaje en cualquier etapa educativa, ya sea en la escolar o en la universidad, es una cuestión de reto para todo el estamento educativo. Este trabajo, tanto de estudio como de investigación, presenta un ejemplo de partida; cubriendo todos estos aspectos, este proyecto acabado enlaza con la cuestión del uso de los museos como un beneficioso recurso en el desarrollo de los trabajos educativos de artes plásticas, en cada nivel de educación secundaria, siendo incluso sus principios del aprendizaje mediante el descubrimiento aplicables en otros entornos tales como en los niveles de la etapa de educación primaria o más tarde en la universidad

Quality improvement in palliative care services and networks: preliminary results of a benchmarking process in Catalonia

Background: a wide range of palliative care services has been implemented in Catalonia over the past 20 years. Quantitative and qualitative differences in the organization of palliative care services between districts and settings can result in wide variability in the quality of these services, and their accessibility. Methods: we implemented a benchmark methodology to compare dimensions of care and organization, to identify aspects requiring improvement, and to establish indicators to measure progress. The overall aim was to generate a consensus document for submission to the Department of Health (DoH) of the Government of Catalonia. Results: a Steering Committee convoked a meeting in Barcelona (Catalonia, Spain) and representatives (n = 114) of all the 37 districts within our health care remit (rural, urban, intermediate, and metropolitan) and settings of the health care system (hospitals, social health centers, community, and nursing homes) attended and took part in plenary sessions and workshops to define areas that, in their experience, were considered weak. Twenty-one consensus recommendations achieving high levels of consensus were generated for submission to the DoH. These included the formal definition of the model of care and organization of palliative care services at all levels in the region, the implementation of measures for improvement in different settings and scenarios, systems for continuous care, and facilities for the continuing training of health care personnel. These proposals have since been implemented in a trial region and, depending on the outcomes, will be applied throughout our health service. Conclusion: we conclude that benchmark methodology is valuable in acquiring data for use in improving palliative care organization for patients' benefit

The Absence of Caspase-8 in the Dopaminergic System Leads to Mild Autism-like Behavior

In the last decade, new non-apoptotic roles have been ascribed to apoptotic caspases. This family of proteins plays an important role in the sculpting of the brain in the early stages of development by eliminating excessive and nonfunctional synapses and extra cells. Consequently, impairments in this process can underlie many neurological and mental illnesses. This view is particularly relevant to dopamine because it plays a pleiotropic role in motor control, motivation, and reward processing. In this study, we analyze the effects of the elimination of caspase-8 (CASP8) on the development of catecholaminergic neurons using neurochemical, ultrastructural, and behavioral tests. To do this, we selectively delete the CASP8 gene in cells that express tyrosine hydroxylase with the help of recombination through the Cre-loxP system. Our results show that the number of dopaminergic neurons increases in the substantia nigra. In the striatum, the basal extracellular level of dopamine and potassium-evoked dopamine release decreased significantly in mice lacking CASP8, clearly showing the low dopamine functioning in tissues innervated by this neurotransmitter. This view is supported by electron microscopy analysis of striatal synapses. Interestingly, behavioral analysis demonstrates that mice lacking CASP8 show changes reminiscent of autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Our research reactivates the possible role of dopamine transmission in the pathogenesis of ASD and provides a mild model of autism