The CEO of Merlin, Ismael Clemente, assured that “the communists of Sumar”, with the PSOE, “opened the doors of hell” to SOCIMI, by proposing last Monday the abolition of this tax regime from which they benefit. types of businesses.
This was stated during a conference with analysts, who are normally summoned to explain the company’s accounts but who began this Friday by giving their opinion on this political agreement, which caused a fall on Tuesday of more than 7% of the Merlin Properties stock market. . , after having read the agreement.
Clemente assured that the Ibex 35, the index in which Merlin is listed, has been affected by this “populism” and that, although the elimination of Socimis is only a proposal and has not materialized, its price has not yet been recovered. this fall.
The leader defended that the law in which this proposal is included, transposition of a European directive aimed at applying a minimum tax rate to multinationals, already excluded SOCIMI from this minimum, which the PSOE had initially respected.
However, Sumar, a party that Clemente called communists, later agreed with the PSOE on this measure, even though its leader said that socialists “always declared that they understood social motivation and economic of socimis”. ”
According to Clemente, the agreement has not yet achieved sufficient consensus to be approved, “since it has not been consulted or supported by the technical bodies of the government or the economic office of the presidency, nor by the conservative parties Catalans and Basques. with reference to Junts and PNV.
Impact of 8.5% on operating income
Regardless, the company calculated that, if ultimately approved, the impact in 2024 would result in a maximum 8.5% reduction in operating profit, which would reduce the dividend by the same proportion.
The manager explained that the tax credits he still has on his balance sheet since the acquisition of a series of Metrovacesa assets in 2016 would make it possible to limit the impact “for a few years and until common sense be found.”
He also admitted that there would be no difference between keeping the company in Spain or moving to another country, since its Spanish assets would be subject to Spanish taxes, although he stressed that with its current Portuguese assets and those it has under development in this country, the percentage of its portfolio outside Spain would reach 20%, which would reduce the impact.
