A few years ago, personal shoppers, people who act as assistants for shopping, became fashionable. Now there is a Catalan start-up that has taken a step further. Do you need a person to accompany you shopping, or is it no longer necessary with artificial intelligence (AI) technology? The system exists and has already been launched experimentally in some shopping centers, and the first results are quite promising, if we are to believe the feedback from those who have used it.

The war in the Middle East and the new world disorder driven from the White House by Donald Trump has losers. The biggest losers are the populations suffering bombardments and embargoes and blockades. But there are also those who win. And by a lot. Some are those who play on event prediction platforms, as is the case with Polymarket. And also those who bet on markets based on the unpredictable statements of the US President, Donald Trump. More than one has fattened their portfolio with these plays with a certain aroma of insider information.

Economic prospects are still favorable. Despite the setback of the last EPA, with a sudden and high increase in unemployment that returns us to the leadership in this scourge in the developed world, Catalonia continues to grow, and above its surroundings. But tailwinds are no guarantee of progress. The risk is having consumed very good years with too much complacency and not having done our homework well enough. Perhaps because some debates are too uncomfortable, but sooner or later we will have to face them: working or not working, rights or duties, higher wages or productivity, technology or employment.

It is fascinating whenever you realize that the history of a shop can serve to explain the history of a country. Today, in 2026, selling suitcases and travel bags is a prosperous business. In an era of taking planes and high-speed trains like one takes the subway, being well-equipped is as fundamental as breathing. Now, leisure and business travel is perfectly incorporated into the daily lives of the middle class – or what’s left of it – and the well-off. But what was happening sixty years ago? And seventy? And a hundred? Well, what was happening was that people, the average citizen, did not travel for pleasure. Or, if they did, it was very exceptionally.

Sweden's prestige as a driver of the green industry in Europe suffered a very hard blow with the bankruptcy of Northvolt in the year 2025. The electric battery manufacturer could not live up to expectations and became the biggest industrial failure in the modern history of the Nordic country. A year later, another emblematic company of the green industrial revolution driven from northern Sweden has avoided a similar fate.

The truth is that in January everything looked good: sales growth, controlled inflation and interest rates falling. It seemed like a perfect year from an economic point of view. Today, however, it couldn't be further from reality. Oil at $100 – even if it was only for a month or so – has altered everything. You already know: when energy goes up, all prices go up. And, even though the conflict has cooled down, the price isn't coming down. It's raining on a wet field and we are amplifying inflationary pressure.For families, the impact is increasingly serious. Not only is there inflation, but Euribor has also risen and, consequently, mortgages will become more expensive. Furthermore, interest rates have not fallen and, right now, the best news would be that they do not rise again in the coming months.Meanwhile, stock markets have turned a page on the conflict and are once again marking historic highs. Two months ago it seemed like the world was ending and that no company was worth anything; today, on the other hand, the vast majority are, apparently, essential again. And it is here where the big unknown appears: what has really changed in just a few weeks? The conflict has cooled down, yes, but its effects remain fully in force in the form of high energy costs and pressure on prices. Rarely have I seen the stock market and oil at their highs at the same time.In the current context, not everyone is winning. Energy and banking benefit from high prices and high rates, while families, especially indebted ones, suffer the consequences. Inflation and the rising cost of mortgages reduce consumption and accentuate growing inequality. And, in the end, families keep taking economic blows, one after another, in a situation that has long been critical. I'm sorry, 2026 will not be better.

On December 16, 1877, an exceptional event occurred that placed Catalonia at the forefront of global technology. On that day, at the School of Industrial Engineers of Barcelona, the first telephony tests in the entire country and some of the first in the world were conducted.

Apple announced this week a change in its executive structure. A change of CEO that, beyond the change of names, represents a whole new era for the apple company. In addition, this week the Port of Barcelona announced that it is restructuring its management team.

As always when a new technology or advance emerges, with great changes and increasingly accelerated (radio, television, internet...), the stages are burned out faster and faster. And there are fears about the impact on the labor market. It has started to happen with artificial intelligence (AI), the big current issue. Several studies, from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Labour Organization (ILO), among others, have analyzed it. Some are more apocalyptic than others, but, in any case, AI is already an argument to reduce staff and gain more margins and profitability.

The journalist, historian, and writer Jaume Clotet (Barcelona, 1974) grew up in a family of bankers – both his father and mother worked there –, but that world never appealed to him: “They had a good understanding of family economics, finance, investments, bonds, stocks... and I’ve been quite uninterested in that in life”. He did inherit the values of saving and prudence: “If my mother invested in the stock market, it was in very controlled and prudent things”, he explains in statements to Empreses.

Wholemeal and high-fiber biscuits. Also with chocolate or caramel touches. Some gluten-free, lactose-free, and salt-free. Round, square, or even dragon-shaped. In Catalonia, Gullón biscuits are a classic on supermarket shelves. Their green logo appears stamped on boxes of dozens of different formats, each aimed at a specific consumer. With over 130 years of history, it is a historic company in the Spanish biscuit sector, but also a European giant: in 2024 it had a turnover of 690 million euros, directly employs over 2,100 people, and is present in 125 countries.

Japan is moving towards a tightening of controls in strategic technological sectors, a direction that is beginning to generate concern in the business community. Within the framework of the new economic security law and in a context of geopolitical rivalry with Beijing, Tokyo has strengthened mechanisms to protect critical infrastructure and data, especially in areas such as semiconductors, artificial intelligence, or batteries. Although the legal framework does not establish explicit restrictions on international recruitment, various sectors warn that the increase in regulatory complexity and the introduction of stricter security criteria could deter the arrival of foreign talent in areas crucial for the country's growth.

In the spring of 2022, we told the life and miracles of the banker Alfred Loewenstein in a story that began, precisely, with his death in strange circumstances. On July 4, 1928, as his Fokker Trimotor was crossing the English Channel, the magnate opened the door that led to the outside of the cabin and plunged to his death. As the causes of the accident were never clarified, the shadow of suspicion loomed over all the characters who surrounded him. Inevitably, when looking for beneficiaries of a possible murder, the eyes turned to two men, Albert Samuel Pam and Frederick Szarvasy, both partners of Loewenstein.

It seems that artificial intelligence has arrived to stay. As happened with other technological revolutions, the fear has set in that it will end up destroying jobs massively. Nothing new. When the internet appeared, the end of many professions was also announced.Beyond opinions, recent studies point in another direction: AI increases worker productivity by around 4% and, in the short term, no significant job destruction has been detected. This does not mean, however, that there will be no changes. There will be, and many.AI will transform tasks, redefine professional profiles, and force adaptation. Just fifteen years ago, almost no one imagined the current demand for artificial intelligence experts. Similarly, today we don't know what the key jobs will be in fifteen years. And this is not an anomaly: it is the usual functioning of technological progress. However, this impact will not be uniform. Medium and large companies start with an advantage, as they can better afford the initial implementation costs. The question is not whether AI will change the labor market, but how and who it will benefit most.The core issue, however, is whether this increase in productivity will translate into better wages. Recent experience suggests skepticism. In other technological revolutions, gains have been unevenly distributed: more qualified profiles have emerged stronger, while workers with more routine tasks have seen their bargaining power reduced.The challenge, therefore, is not only technological, but also social and political. If the benefits of AI are concentrated in a few companies or profiles, the result will be a more unequal labor market. If, on the other hand, it is accompanied by training, adaptation, and certain guarantees, it can become a tool for shared progress.

The stratospheric professional leap of a Spanish executive has marked the week. Amparo Moraleda will be appointed president of the aeronautical giant Airbus next October, thus breaking with the Franco-German tradition that until now pursued the highest office in the European consortium. Executive functions, however, will remain in the hands of the CEO, the Frenchman Guillaume Faury. On the other hand, continuity will continue in another company in the aeronautical sector: this week Maurici Lucena has been re-elected president of Aena for another four years, until 2030.

For a few days now, the opposition's offensive has consisted of talking about the existence of a fiscal hell. The PP, which insists on the need to lower taxes, has recently been using the concept frequently. And it is an expression that the president of Foment del Treball, Josep Sánchez Llibre, who will run again for a third term in the elections he has called for May 18, made known during the presentation of the Green Paper on taxation in Catalonia in 2024. He himself considers it "apt" and says it is currently enduring.

Puig Brands, the Catalan multinational family group for beauty and fashion, which is negotiating an integration with the American Estée Lauder, three times larger, brings to the table the process of ownership change of local companies that has been occurring over the last 20 years. This very week, the Japanese Marubeni Corporation has bought 85% of Factorenergia, founded in 1999 by Emili Rousaud, former candidate for the presidency of Barça, for 204 million euros. The ownership changes of Catalan companies have not stopped. Between 2005 and 2006, the sales of Panrico, by the Costafreda family, to the fund Apax Partners were closed; and that of Chupa Chups, founded by Enric Bernat in 1958, to the Italian Perfetti Van Melle. Bernat's heirs today operate Casa Batlló on Barcelona's Passeig de Gràcia, one of Antoni Gaudí's iconic buildings, which they bought in the 90s.

Over the last decade, far-right parties have gained ground across Europe and beyond. Social sciences have identified factors such as globalization, immigration, and economic insecurity as key drivers of this electoral shift. However, one factor has received surprisingly little attention: gender equality issues. As societies move towards greater equality between men and women, a segment of the electorate is reacting against these changes. Far-right parties in Spain (Vox), Italy (Lega), and other countries have placed opposition to feminism and the defense of traditional gender roles at the center of their platforms. They deny discrimination against women and present feminist movements as a threat to social stability. This discourse resonates with voters who hold sexist attitudes or feel uncomfortable with the changing roles between men and women.

From Guitarland you can easily leave convinced that your life needs a guitar to acquire the full dimension of its meaning. Richard and José Luis have been running this shop on Carrer del Diluvi in Barcelona since 2003, right in the heart of Gràcia, a neighborhood that has been becoming orphaned of this type of establishment –contrary to its personality, with deep-rooted festivals and a tradition for musical taste– for a type of resident who is a very interesting potential customer for the services a music store can offer.

Since she was 15 years old, Xantal Llavina (1975) has been clear that she wants to be a journalist, but with a family of entrepreneurs, she opted to graduate in journalism and business: "I'm a humanities person and accounting was a bit complicated for me. In fact, I begged the teacher to average my grades with the theoretical exams because I would never be an accountant, only a journalist. A year later, when I was already on television, I ran into the teacher and she told me that I was right, that I wanted to be a journalist," she explains. Restless and hardworking, Llavina has ended up building a career that goes far beyond journalism.