Mobile Tech & Gadgets

We know that the price of housing in the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands is skyrocketing because neither the British nor the Germans can afford it.

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The price of housing in highly stressed tourist areas, such as the Balearic Islands and the Canary Islands, has reached levels so high that neither the British nor the Germans, traditionally the most active foreign buyers and wealthy people on the islands, can afford to continue acquiring properties at the rate of previous years. As and how they collected in Express this trend well supported by the latest data of the General Council of Notaries, in which a very relevant change can be seen in the Spanish real estate market, especially on the islands, where international demand has always been noted as part of the problem. Fewer houses are sold. According to the log data Notaries, during the first half of 2025, the Balearic and Canary Islands have experienced a real turnaround in the home buying and selling market. The percentage of home sales by foreigners fell by 7.7% in the Canary Islands and 6.8% in the Balearic Islands during the first half of 2025. In the same period, only two territories showed a behavior similar to the islands: Valencia, which fell by 3.6% and Navarra, which reduced the number of purchase and sale operations with foreigners by 3.7%. The reason: too expensive housing. It is enough to continue reviewing the data provided by the College of Notaries to find one of the reasons that could have caused this. drop in trading volume: prices have skyrocketed. The figures show how the traditional appeal for British and German buyers is declining. The data reveal that the average price paid by foreigners in purchase and sale operations in Spain as a whole was 2,417 euros per square meter, which represents an increase of 7.6% compared to the price in 2024. Non-resident foreigners continue to pay higher amounts for their homes (€3,126/m2) than resident foreigners (€1,912/m2) and nationals (1,809 €/m2). In the Canary Islands the average price rose by 14.1%, far exceeding the national average, while in the Balearic Islands the average increase was up to 9% compared to 2024. Source: General Council of Notaries Foreigners continue buying in Spain. The data indicate that the volume of foreign sales operations in Spain has not decreased in the territory as a whole, where the total number of homes bought by foreigners increased 2% compared to last year, reaching 71,155 operations. This variation in the volume of operations on the islands, together with the increase in their price, leads us to suspect that price pressure is differentially affecting the most touristic and stressed areas, especially those that, as in the case of the islandsthe options to expand the surface area for residential housing are very limited. That is to say, it is not that foreigners are buying less, but that they are doing so in less tense and with more reasonable prices. Who buys in Spain? Despite the drop in sales from the islands, the British continue to lead the list of foreign buyers in Spain, with 5,731 registered transactions, followed by Moroccans (5,654 transactions) and Germans (4,756 purchases and sales). However, operations carried out by foreigners represented 19.3% of total sales, a slightly lower proportion than that registered in 2024 with 20.3%. This loss of prominence is felt above all in the islands, where the British and Germans clearly dominated the statistics. The end of the “Golden Visa”. Besides, the advertisement of the elimination of the so-called golden visas or “Golden Visa”“, which allowed you to obtain residency in Spain in exchange for investing a certain amount of money in real estate, has also conditioned the decline in demand. In the first six months of 2025, foreign residents accounted for 60.9% of the purchases made, which represents 6.4% more than the previous year. On the other hand, non-resident foreigners who were affected by the elimination of the ‘Golden Visa’ and had to assume new tax limits, they reduced their purchases by 4.1%. In Xataka | Hoteliers dream of hanging the sign full in 2025. The rent that their employees must pay is their worst nightmare Image | Unsplash (Boris Busorgin)

its Yangwang U9 Xtreme is already the fastest on the Nürburgring

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Breaking the barrier of the mythical seven minutes in the Green Hell and dethroning the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra as the fastest (production) electric car in the world. He Yangwang U9 has once again broken another record and BYD has fully entered the race to boast of achievements every kilowatt. And BYD announced this morning that its Yangwang U9 Xtreme It is already the fastest electric car on the Nürburgring, the legendary German circuit that continues to be the place where those who want to demonstrate that they have the best and most advanced product meet. Specifically, it has been its U9 Xtreme version, the same one with which last summer the company top speed was close to 500 km/hwith which BYD has seen the 20,832 meters of the famous route. With just a few tenths of a second left before the clock reached seven minutes, the electric supercar has crossed the finish line. Specifically, the Yangwang U9 China as a reference BYD does not mention that this “previous record” was held by the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, which with its street version had stopped the clock last June at 7’04″957. At that time, the Chinese firm expelled the Chinese firm from the throne. Porsche Taycan Turbo GT with Weissach packagewhich in 2023 certified a new record for an electric car half a second higher. Of course, what BYD has achieved with its Yangwang U9 Xtreme is the record for a production electric car, since the car is limited to 30 units. Xiaomi continues to hold the circuit record for a four-door electric car. And just a year ago, the company stopped the clock at 6’46″874. The difference was that this car was specially prepared for the circuit and, therefore, it is not a unit in production, no matter how limited the run may be. BYD’s milestone is important because they show that their car is not just fast in a straight line. The record in the Green Hell with a car capable of approaching 500 km/h top speed gives an idea of ​​its versatility. “It is not only the fastest car in the world in maximum speed, but also a vehicle with the performance and dynamic qualities necessary to break lap records on a circuit with a wide variety of curves,” said Stella Li, once the new record was known. As for the man who has been able to take the Yangwang U9 Xtreme to the new record, Moritz Kranz He is a renowned driver whose presence in the GT category has allowed him to travel “almost 10,000 laps” of the circuit, in the company’s words. All in all, he needed to tame a supercar that equips four high-performance engines that can reach 30,000 rpm and whose combined power exceeds 3,000 HP. Of course, the Yangwang U9 This brand also allows BYD to show the best of itself beyond pure performance. With Yangwang, the Chinese company has presented its intelligent suspension system that allows the car drive on three wheels or even jump to dodge an obstacle. But let him also navigate riversas the Yangwang U8 does by pulling the pure power of its engines. Photo | BYD In Xataka | BYD already has its luxury brand in Europe: Denza sweeps away any prejudice with a Z9GT that is a technological arsenal

not only its drones come from China, but also Ukraine’s latest army

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In the month of October there was an anomaly for Ukrainian troops. Reconnaissance drones began to spot unknown figures among Moscow’s soldiers. It was known that there were north koreansbut a new front began to increase as the days went by: Cubans. Now, in an unpredictable turn of events, kyiv is being joined by a most unexpected group: Chinese. Why are there Chinese? The story was told in an extensive report by The Guardian newspaper. Although the contingent is still small, they speak of a few dozen, the very existence of Chinese fighting on the Ukrainian side is politically significant because contradicts the story that Beijing, as a social bloc, massively supports the invasion of Russia. Most of these volunteers did not set out as combatants from the beginning, but rather as observers or humanitarian volunteers: they arrived, saw direct damage to civilians, and concluded that simply donating or showing compassion was not enough. Cases like Tim’swho was scarred after seeing the bodies in the kyiv children’s hospital, and jumped into combat from the simple idea that his inaction would have been worse than the risk. There is no epic in his story: there is a feeling of moral urgency and the point of no return once the violence is seen in the first person. Disenchantment as a driving force. He explained the British media that these decisions are not only born from the war, but from a previous trajectory of personal wear within China: unemployment structural, feeling of vital stagnation, deterioration of freedoms and closure of civic space after the pandemic. Both Tim and Fan, another of the combatants, they express the same with different languages: to stay was to remain tied to a life that for them was not moving forward and that, as they saycould not be questioned publicly. War, paradoxically, offers them what they lacked: the ability to act, a real transformation of their own destiny and an environment where, although there is enormous physical risk, there is also room for personal decision. At least for them, it is more rational to risk their lives on a foreign front than to remain “frozen” in their country with no option to change. Public opinion. A investigation Tao Wang of Manchester Metropolitan University concluded that 80% of Chinese Respondents held pro-Russian views during the first year of the war and that “government-controlled media managed to influence public opinion in favor of Russia” as the war progressed. The volunteers they described an ecosystem where the pro-Kremlin narrative seemed the only one that circulated without cost, while sympathizing with Ukraine was seen as “deviation” and could bring social or legal consequences. That is why dissent seems like a rare bird: not because it does not exist, but because, according to the studyit is not safe to express it. Prudential asymmetry. Plus: the operating path is not symmetrical. There is a lot of pro-mercenary content for Russia that circulate in Chinese networks without brakes (video above), while finding instructions for enlisting in Ukraine requires bypassing censorship, using VPN and, as In the case of Fangetting to ask an AI where to start. Furthermore, the Guardian indicated that the risk to coming back is real: relatives questioned, possible ambiguous charges, surveillance. In other words, the State tolerates (and sometimes facilitates) the pro-Russian participationbut forces those who decide otherwise to go underground. This difference in cost explains why the pronuclear group with Ukraine is small, although it does not invalidate its relevance as a symptom. Limited military value. There is no doubt, militarily, these few dozen do not change the balance of the conflict. Symbolically, they confront part of the official discourse. They demonstrate that the legitimacy of the Beijing-Moscow alliance It is not socially homogeneous, or it is not always so, and that there is also a layer that rejects it when it has room to act. For Ukraine, its value possibly lies in proving that even in China there are citizens who consider the invasion unjustifiable and enough to risk their lives to stop it. What are they looking for? When the Guardian I asked them why take risks for a foreign country, the answers were not geopolitical but vital: the idea of ​​building a life in another environment, giving a different future to your children and/or demonstrating that your identity as Chinese is not automatically tied to the State or its foreign policy. In it Tim’s caseis also a message towards prejudices: nothing should be taken for granted about any society, much less just because the State is going in the opposite direction. Thus, the gesture of these unlikely recruits in the Ukrainian war once again demonstrates that the sides are invisible. If the Cubans went to Ukraine for an issue purely economicthe Chinese seem to do it for a much more vital issue. Image | LAC Chad Sharman, IToldYa In Xataka | Ukraine brought its drones closer to the Russian army. Their surprise is capital: the North Koreans are now Cubans with an irresistible promise In Xataka | In 2023, a pilot from Ukraine had an idea for Star Wars. Not only did it go well: his kamikaze plan has rewritten the war manual

If the question is whether we can have a cheap electric car in the short term, Skoda’s answer is clear: “no”

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The cheap electric car is, at the moment, a mythological being. At least if we want it to offer us the same autonomy performance as a combustion car. And that variable continues to be what puts manufacturers back when they have to electrify their access versions. The last to make it clear: Skoda. “That’s for sure”. These are the words of Klaus Zellmer, CEO of Skoda, who has confirmed that “we will not electrify our basic models, such as the Fabia, the Kamiq or the Scala” in an interview with Automobilwoche. He then noted that they will keep them as mild hybrid models but “we will not launch them as purely electric vehicles, that’s for sure.” Why does an electric car have less autonomy than advertised? What Zellmer is not clear about, he explains in the interview, is that there is enough potential customer to make this cheap electric car a sufficiently profitable product. “But…”. The “buts” are the big problem with the low-cost electric car. And that big but is, without a doubt, autonomy. Yesterday we explained that an electric car can be much cheaper than a combustion one if the type of use accompanies it. This “cheaper” is more pronounced in cities where electric cars gain in consumption, in the price of electricity compared to fuel and maintenance (due to having a lower risk of breakdowns). The problem is that when the driver wants to go on a long trip he has to accept some discomfort. And not everyone is willing to do so. Does it make little sense to define your purchase by two long trips a year? Maybe, but here each one must evaluate How much is your time and money worth? Many people are still not compensated. The strategy. For now, we know that Skoda will have its own version of a 25,000 euro electric car but it will not be released below this price. That is, he will have a brother Volkswagen ID.2 either Pole ID but he will not put on the market a brother of the Volkswagen ID.1the electric version that the German company will have in the range of 20,000 euros. The movement makes a lot of sense. The Volkswagen Group uses the pull of the Volkswagen brand to champion the electrification of the automobile conglomerate. Launching an electric Skoda would force it to place it below its German brother due to the positioning of both companies in the market and they do not believe that there is sufficient demand to keep two models alive. There is another detail to take into account, Renault has demonstrated with the Five that can sell many units of an electric car for between 25,000 and 30,000 euros. But it has done so with a very strong commitment to design and care, positioning it as a perfect car for the urban environment but also positioning it as the second beautiful, practical and cheap car in a home. sell a lot. This is what a manufacturer needs if they want amortize the investment in an electric car low price. And the profit margins have narrowed in that segment given that the price of the battery continues to represent a very high cost in relation to the final price of the vehicle. To this we must add the safety obligations of the European Union, which have also made the survival of this type of automobile difficult. Although the price of the battery has been falling (and is expected to continue doing so in the futureThe truth is that making a low-priced electric car profitable is very complicated. It is necessary to adapt production lines, have an adequate supply of batteries and, if you want to achieve maximum performance in autonomy and behavior, design your own platform. That is why some manufacturers have chosen to share platforms (like Volkswagen and Ford) or renew cars that were becoming obsolete with a profound update to reposition them in the market as a new car, trying to amortize the initial investment, as in the case of the Dacia Spring. Run before walking. What they defend at Skoda is that the transition has been done too quickly and that it is impossible for manufacturers to meet the given deadlines. We may more or less agree with this statement but the truth is that the public is not buying electric cars at the expected rate. And those cars worth between 20,000 and 25,000 euros are testimonials. In fact, of the 10 best-selling electric cars in Europeonly the Renault 5… and the Skoda Elroq are sold for less than 30,000 euros. Of course, for now the threats of multimillion-dollar fines remain. first with a term that ends in 2027. Those who exceed an average of 93.6 gr/km of CO2 in their fleet sold since 2025 will be punished with a fine of 95 euros per gram of CO2 exceeded and car sold. That is, if the fleet of cars sold is one million and the average has been exceeded by one gram/km of CO2, we are talking about a fine of 95 million euros. In 2030, that limit should be cut in half, leaving virtually everything that not be an electrified carthat’s why at Skoda they talk about maintaining their access models “until the end of the decade.” From there, 2035 should be the year in which cars with combustion engines will not be sold. Something that is in the air at night pressure from big manufacturers and countries like Germany o Italy with a large automobile related industry. Photo | Skoda In Xataka | Denmark wants to make the electric car its only path. And it has done so by punishing those who buy cheap gasoline cars

It’s not that Apple is going to broadcast F1. He is building the “iTunes of sports”

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Apple has closed the rights to Formula 1 in the United States for five years and 750 million dollars. But looking only at the price is missing the pattern: it is building a vertical sports platform where it controls broadcasting, statistics, context and extra content. An ecosystem. The inventory. In less than three years, Apple has accumulated: Exclusive MLS Rights worldwide ($2.5 billion until 2033). F1 rights in the United StatesApple is accumulating broadcasting rights, launching its own apps and structuring a closed ecosystem against the traditional broadcast model from 2026 (150 million annually). AppleSportsfree app launched in February 2024 with real-time statistics. Sports integration in Apple News, Apple Maps, Apple Music and Fitness+. The model. Unlike MLS, where matches require a separate subscription, F1 will be included on Apple TV ($12.99 per month in the United States). The playoffs of the MLS have also become free for subscribers. Apple is keeping it simple: one payment, sports content included. F1 TV Premium, the competition’s own service that costs $16.99 per month, will be included at no extra cost for those who already pay for Apple TV. Between the lines. Apple is not seeking immediate profitability with sports rights. Seeks to anchor users to the ecosystem. Each broadcast supports Apple’s association with sport and can be an opportunity to sell more subscriptions to Fitness+ (there is F1 content that will be integrated there) or Apple One, or more Apple Watches ultimately. The strategy is the same as with Apple Music, TV+ (now ‘AppleTV‘) or iCloud: the content is the hook, the ecosystem is the business. Telefónica, DAZN and traditional broadcast companies now have to compete against those who can afford to lose money on rights because they earn elsewhere. The same thing that happened to Netflix when Amazon or Apple itself entered its business. He timing. The F1 movie, starring Brad Pitt and produced by Apple, has raised $629 million and has become the highest-grossing sports film in history. Apple has been working with F1 for three years. The rights agreement is not coincidental: it is the next phase of an already consolidated relationship. F1 has grown exponentially in the United States thanks to ‘Drive to Survive‘ from Netflix. Apple has detected the exact moment to enter: when the public is built but before the market becomes saturated. With Brad Pitt’s movie, Apple launched a huge marketing campaign disguised as a movie and validated its own products as suitable for the film industry. Yes, but. This model only works with great financial muscle. ESPN paid 85 million annually for F1. Apple has doubled the figure without blinking. Netflix has not shown great interest in live sports. Amazon bought the rights to the NFL and Ligue 1 at the time, but has not gone further. Apple is creating something different: a layer that wraps sports in its technology. The Apple Sports app does not currently include any of streamingbut it is a hub that will be able to direct traffic to Apple TV. The threat. If it works, Apple can bid for European rights: Premier, Champions, LaLiga… They have money, technology, brand and 2 billion active devices. The problem for traditional TVs is not just that Apple enters their market. It’s that you can afford not to make money from it for years while you build your platform. In Xataka | The new Apple M5 is a potentially monstrous chip, but the surprise is where it makes the real leap: in the execution of AI models Featured image | Apple

We have 3 days to get one of these televisions with up to 42% discount

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Renewing a TV (or any device) is always better if we have offers to choose from. Thanks to this, we can take home a better television while spending less, ideal for our pocket. It is true that we already have Black Friday just around the corner, but that does not mean we should overlook promotions such as the new Flash Offers from El Corte Inglés. As usual, We only have 2 days to take advantage of these offers. We have a good assortment of discounted models, although below we leave you a selection of some of the most notable ones: Smart TV Haier H43K85FUX by 279 eurosa very economical 43-inch model. Smart TV Haier H65M90EUX by 859 euroswith MiniLED technology and 144 Hz. Smart TV LG 32LQ630B6LA by 209 eurosan ideal option for small rooms such as a bedroom. Smart TV Samsung TQ75QN80FAUXXC by 1,499 euroswith Neo QLED technology and 75 inches. Smart TV Haier H43S80FUX by 299 euroswith QLED technology and gaming mode with 120 Hz. Smart TV Haier H43K85FUX We start with a very economical option. This is the Haier H43K85FUX television, a very interesting 43-inch Smart TV that can fit perfectly in a small room like a bedroom. Its RRP is 369 euros, but these Flash Offers leave it to us for only 279 euros. Yes indeed: only until next October 22. It is a compact model that uses LED technology and has 4K resolution. Besides, uses Google TV as operating systemwhich will give us access to tons of applications and a very good user experience. It also has compatibility with the Google Assistant and Chromecast, so we will have it very easy to send content from the mobile phone directly to the TV. 108 cm (43″) Haier H43K85FUX UHD LED TV, Smart Google TV, HDR10, Dolby Audio The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Smart TV Haier H65M90EUX We continue with another Haier television, although this time one that uses MiniLED technology. This is the H65M90EUX model in its 65-inch version, so it is ideal to be the main TV that we have in the living room. In this case, we are facing a significantly larger reduction: 1,499 euros that its RRP starts to cost 859 euros. As we have mentioned, this Haier TV uses MiniLED technology, which offers brighter images with more vivid colors. A very interesting point about it is that it has a 144 Hz refresh rate and HDMI 2.1 ports, which makes it ideal for playing. In addition, it also has very good 60W sound and Dolby Atmos compatibility. MiniLED TV 165cm (65″) Haier H65M90EUX 4K UHD, Smart Google TV, Dolby Vision The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Smart TV LG 32LQ630B6LA We return now with another very economical option, ideal to place in small rooms or second homes. This is the LG 32LQ630B6LA model, a very attractive television for its price. Its RRP is 279 euros, but until next October 22 we can take it home for 209 euros. Of this model, which is 32 inches, it should be noted that it has HD resolution, although it is more than enough if we take into account that it is very compact. In addition, it has a WebOS operating system, which gives access to applications of all kinds such as the main streaming platforms. To finish, It is compatible with formats such as HDR10 Pro. LED TV 80 cm (32”) LG 32LQ630B6LA SmartTV WebOS 22, HDR10, HLG, Dolby Digital Plus Sound The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Smart TV Samsung TQ75QN80FAUXXC We continue with another television with MiniLED technology such as this Neo QLED from Samsung. Here we are betting on a much larger diagonal, since it is 75 inches. With it, we will have a real home theater. Its RRP is 2,699 euros, but these Flash Offers leave it to us for 1,499 eurosa discount of almost half. This model, which also has a refresh rate of 144 Hzmounts the NQ4 AI Gen2 processor, thanks to which we can scale lower resolution images to see them with very good quality. In addition, it has a good sound system and compatibility with Dolby Atmos. It is also compatible with Bixby and Alexa, thanks to which we can carry out various actions with our voice. Neo QLED MiniLED TV 189cm (75″) Samsung TQ75QN80FAUXXC 4K MiniLED Vision AI Smart TV The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Smart TV Haier H43S80FUX We close this selection of televisions with another Haier, this time for the H43S80FUX model. This is another very good quality-price option.especially if we take into account that it is 43 inches and uses QLED technology. Its RRP is 449 euros, but right now we can take it home for 299 euros. By using QLED technology, we will have more vivid colors and greater contrast than conventional models. It has 4K resolution, is compatible with HDR10 and It also uses the Google operating system. On a sound level, it performs great thanks to Dolby Audio, it is compatible with Chromecast and also has a game mode that raises its refresh rate to 120 Hz. QLED TV 108 cm (43″) Haier H43S80FUX UHD 4K, Central stand, Smart Google TV, HDR10, Gaming 120Hz, Dolby Audio The price could vary. We earn commission from these links Some of the links in this article are affiliated and may provide a benefit to Xataka. In case of non-availability, offers may vary. Images | Purchaseddiction, Haier, LG, Samsung In Xataka | Best televisions in quality price. Which one to buy and seven recommended 4K smart TVs In Xataka | Best sound bars in quality price. Which one to buy and seven recommended models from 140 euros

Renfe is achieving 96% punctuality in its service. But not in Spain, but in Mecca

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While AVE customers in Spain are very familiar with the wave of service delays, especially during this last summerRenfe boasts in Saudi Arabia of figures that seem from another world: more than 96% punctuality and “anecdotal” cancellations in the high-speed service that operates between Mecca and Medina, according to the company. The truth is that the Haramain High-Speed ​​Railway numbers contrast with what we have here in Spain. The Saudi showcase of Renfe. The Spanish company leads the consortium that manages this pioneering high-speed train in Saudi Arabia, responsible for the complete operation: from driving to ticket sales. Álvaro Fernández Heredia, president of Renfe, presented these data at the Saudi International Rail in Riyadh, where he assured that the project is “one of the most successful in the world.” The figures that Renfe displays outside the home. The Haramain connects Mecca and Medina over 453 kilometers, with stops at Jeddah and the international airport. According to Renfe, since its inauguration in October 2018, the service has transported 29.2 million passengers, with a year-on-year growth of 20%. In the last year, the operator claims to have achieved more than 96% punctuality, measured with a margin of up to five minutes late, and operated 70,000 consecutive services without a single cancellation. The litmus test of Ramadan. Just like show According to its figures, during the March 2025 campaign, the service mobilized 1.35 million pilgrims, 40% more than the previous year. 3,410 trips were made with up to 132 trains running on the same day. The average punctuality reached 98.5% in this case, says Renfe, without recording cancellations. These are figures that are hardly seen in the company’s Spanish reports. The contrast with Spain. Last summer four out of ten high-speed trains They arrived late in Spain. Between June and August, 6,554 long-distance and AVE trains suffered delays of more than 15 minutes, according to pointed out El Mundoaffecting 2.5 million passengers. However, only three out of every hundred were able to claim compensation after tightening reimbursement conditions that Renfe applied in July 2024. Now it takes an hour of delay to obtain 50% of the ticket, when before 15 minutes were enough. Minister Óscar Puente recognized in September that the system will continue to have incidents “for at least two more years.” What’s coming now. Renfe has reaffirmed its commitment to Saudi Arabia and its ambitious Vision 2030 plan, which includes new railway projects. Among them, a high-speed line between Riyadh and Qiddiya, whose tender could be launched in the first half of 2026. Cover image | Tim Adams In Xataka | Renfe has found a scapegoat for its problems on the Madrid-Barcelona line: Talgo and its AVRIL trains

is falling silently since 2022

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After escalating during the pandemic to higher levels of its history, the price of rent in the United States started to retreat for the first time in years. The shift is neither punctual nor local: it is now observed on a sustained basis in most large cities and has lasted long enough to be considered a phase change in the market, not a seasonal blip. The question seems clear: why on earth did the rent begin to be transferred precisely now and not before? An unusual twist. After two years of historic increases driven by the pandemic shockrents in the United States have almost three consecutive years correcting National data places the average rent 3-3.5% below from the maximum of August 2022, with interannual decreases chained in the 50 largest markets. That correction is striking for a reason. very simple: It occurs in a country with a chronic housing deficit and with a still stressed cost of living. It is not a collapse, but a normalization after an extreme phase: because even with the decrease, the typical rent is still 20-22% above 2021. Austin as a laboratory. It we count a few months ago. Austin possibly offers the compressed version of what has happened on a national scale: after a boom in demand (internal migration, arrival of companies, cheap credit), the market responded with an expansion of unprecedented offer (an increase of more than 8% in the housing stock in a few years, with permits at rates that surpassed other comparable cities) and a subsequent slowdown due to the rapid rise in interest rates. The combined effect has led to rent drops of 22% from highs and sales price declines of 10-18%. The Austin case demonstrates that when the bottleneck is attacked on the supply side, the price falls before demand is destroyed due to poverty: it cools due to saturation, not due to collapse. National evidence. The pattern is common: in 2024 they were delivered more than 600,000 homes multifamily, the largest flow since 1986. There are still 686,000 under construction (well above the historical average) and 7.1% vacancymaximum of the series. A greater number of competing units forces prices to be lowered or free weeks to be granted to accelerate occupancy. The time that passes from when a home is published on the market until the contract is signed with a tenant now takes longer: 31 days on average compared to 19-20 days at the peak of tightness in 2021. The macro result is the loss of owners’ ability to raise prices in a market where the tenant has regained the margin of choice. Fall mechanics. The 2020-2022 phase combined demand shock (sudden migration + very low rates + change in preferences) with insufficient supply After a decade of under-construction post-2008, the price rose. In 2023-2025 reverse the asymmetry: the pipeline (the set of homes in the process of entering the market, but that have not yet become available) during the boom is delivered just when demand is cools due to high rates and the return of some migratory flows. What happens then? That the excess of units leads to greater vacancy, and vacancy is the nuclear variable that sets the price: after a certain threshold the expected income per empty unit falls more than it is worth keeping the rent high, and the owner adjust the price before than empty time. The fall is not structural but cyclical: if the supply were to stop completely, the pressure would return, as analysts already warn in the same Austin case. Uneven geography. The most intense decreases are concentrated in the Sun Belt markets (Austin, Phoenix, Denver, San Antonio, Orlando, Dallas), where production was faster and vacancy was higher. Markets with expensive land and regulatory barriers (cities such as San Francisco, New York, the NE coast and some Midwest nodes) show even rises because there the supply adjustment arrived late or simply did not arrive. This also confirms the direct relationship between the pace of permits/construction and price moderation: where construction was allowed, the rent fell, and where it was not, it continued to rise. It’s a correction. Most analysts agree on the same explanation. Despite the “rents are falling” narrative, the benchmark matters: the current absolute level is still well above pre-COVID, and the rent-to-income ratio has only returned to “manageable” zone (~23%) in a section of cities, and in areas like Miami or the NE coast it is still overflowing. That is why the experts they underline That anyone who expects to return to 2019 prices does not understand the basis: the new housing built is higher because the cost factors (land, insurance, construction, structural inflation) have not reversed, which suggests that the downward phase has a ceiling. Exportable lesson. The factor that can be copied is not the United States Federal Reserve or migration, but rather the supply elasticity: Austin proves, with an example empirical and measurablethat by authorizing and delivering new housing in large and sustained volumes, the rent stops being a fatalistic variable and begins to behave as an acceptable price due to competition. The rest of the country reproduces the same pattern where supply entered on a scale, and where it did not enter, the price simply did not weaken. Image | Pexels, Eric R. Bechtold, Apartment List In Xataka | Austin has managed to see its rents drop 22% in a year and a half. And there is a word that explains it: overconstruction In Xataka | Brussels has thousands of empty homes. So he’s going to start confiscating them and renting them at a social price

For the first time in many months, there is a chance to see a truly strange event: real rain

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This story begins with a pinch of hope. In recent days, the main meteorological models were beginning to agree: the interaction of a deep trough and a subtropical low that would generate a fairly active front. In other words, for the first time in a long time, real rain could make its way to Spain. Not even Danasnor summer storms: real water. The problem? That, actually, that They were just a handful of exits. deterministic and considering that autumn has always been (and will be increasingly) infernally difficult to model, that was very little. It doesn’t mean, of course, that it won’t rain. It’s going to rain, but the doubts are enormous. Although, as the cards are dealt, it all starts to make sense. But what is going to happen? According to AEMETFrom Monday to Wednesday, the rain will be concentrated in the northwest of the peninsula. However, only in Galicia will it be persistent and there will be significant accumulations. On Thursday the situation will become more “democratic” and the rains will reach a good part of the northwest, the center of the Peninsula and the Pyrenees. The wind can be very strong. However, real rain (as “real” as it can be in this situation) in the center will have to wait until Friday. Beyond Friday everything becomes more diffuse, some rain is expected in the interior, in the south and in the Balearic Islands. And, almost certainly, a small drop in temperatures followed by another rebound. One that will leave us better than we were, yes; but with temperatures above normal. And then? In reality, everything seems to indicate that these meteorological skirmishes will be little. And, given this, many experts already they begin to put their hopes in December. That’s bad, yes. It is true that the country’s reservoirs they are much better not just last year, but the average of the last ten years. But this “water cushion” will not last forever and, although we tend to forget, autumn is a particularly important season for reserves. “in general terms, autumn usually registers higher accumulations than winter in our country as a whole”, said Yurima Celdrán. If we lose it, we will be facing the next drought with one hand tied behind our back. And going to December to wait for a ‘miracle’ is not positive at all. Image | ECMWF In Xataka | The Mayan idea with which this researcher wants to revolutionize the way we treat drinking water: artificial gardens

dominate the entire value chain

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The race for control of the energy of the 21st century already has a provisional winner. While Europe stumbles over his own debates and United States try to rebuild an aging nuclear industry, China step on the accelerator. In April, approved the construction of ten reactors worth 200 billion yuan (24 billion euros). It is just one step in a much broader project: the return of the atom as a pillar of global power. New conquests. China has been competing for years to lead all possible technological transitions: from renewable energy to storage, and now also nuclear. In the words of energy analyst John Kempthe country has 59 operational reactors and more than 30 under construction. No other nation has such a program. In fact, half of all the reactors being built in the world are in Chinese territory. Beyond talk about a “nuclear renaissance,” only China is turning it into state policy. A bet on nuclear. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA)security and reliability of supply have become critical priorities for Beijing after years of expansion of electricity supply. However, the push towards nuclear has another dimension of technological independence. Under the Made in China strategy, the country sought to dominate all the links in its energy chain, and today it produces 100% of its nuclear equipment in national territory. according to China Nuclear Energy Association (CNEA). In parallel, China promotes its technology abroad. According to the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC)the export of the Hualong One reactor is a national priority, with reactors in Pakistan, projects in Argentina and expansion plans throughout Asia and Africa. Nuclear energy is both a tool for decarbonization and energy diplomacy: a way to secure supply, reduce emissions and project technological power. The renewable paradox. China leads the global green transition, but its energy matrix still marked for coal. According to Ember data38% of the country’s electricity already comes from low-carbon sources. Even so, 62% continue to depend on fossil fuels, a proportion that reveals how far they still are from total decarbonization. Their challenge is monumental: leave coal behind without turning off the country. That is why the atom does not replace renewable energy: it sustains them. Nuclear acts as “firm energy”, the basis that keeps the electrical system stable when there is no sun or wind. Coal continues to be the great point of friction—it guarantees supply and employment, but clashes with the ambition to be a renewable leader. In more geopolitical terms, renewable energy is a form of sovereignty. Any country can generate its own electricity. But China wants something more: full control of the electrical system. The muscle of the atom. China is building reactors at a rate no one else can match: between ten and eleven per year. According to the IAEAthe country already has 58 operational reactors and 27 under construction, totaling more than 86 GW of capacity. Nuclear represents 4.47% of its electricity, a small but increasing share. According to Global Energy Monitorthe operational park amounts to 58.1 GW, with forecasts of 63 GW at the end of 2025 and 71 GW in 2026, the year in which China will surpass France as the second nuclear power. Projections from the China Nuclear Energy Association foresee more than 100 GW in operation by 2030 and nearly 200 GW in 2040, double current US capacity. In 2024, nuclear investment reached an all-time high of 146.9 billion yuan. Although its participation in the electricity mix is ​​around 5%, the magnitude of the Chinese system converts that percentage into a volume comparable to all of France’s nuclear production. Technological ambition. After decades of dependence on foreign designs such as the American AP1000, Beijing has developed their own models. Hualong One, a third-generation reactor, is already operating in four national units and thirteen more are under construction. And it doesn’t stop there. China also leads the fourth generation of reactors, safer and more efficient. In 2023, the HTR-PM came into operationthe world’s first modular high-temperature reactor, in Shidao Bay: the prelude to a new stage where nuclear becomes flexible, scalable and commercially viable. In parallel, the Xinghuo-1 project—a hybrid fusion-fission reactor— seeks to achieve a Q factor > 30enough to generate more energy than it consumes. China hopes to have it connected to the grid by 2035, which could put it decades ahead of the rest of the world in the race for commercial fusion. Such ambition requires fuel. China has uranium reserves, but not enough for its expansion. Last year it produced just 1,700 tons, 4% of the world, and imported more than 22,000. Your solution: “fish” uranium from the sea. Researchers at the Frontiers Science Center for Rare Isotopes at Lanzhou University have developed a material called DAE-MOF, capable of absorbing uranium 40 times more efficiently than previous methods. The goal is to have pilot plants by 2035 and large-scale production in 2050. The ocean, with its 4.5 billion tons of dissolved uranium (a thousand times more than land reserves), could ensure centuries of energy autonomy. Another step towards total independence. Forecasts. If plans are met, China will surpass France in 2026 and the United States in 2030 in installed nuclear capacity. By 2040, its 200 GW operating will represent close to 10% of its electricity mix, according to the CNEA. At the same time, the country will maintain its dominance in renewables: the IEA estimates that it will reach 2,460 GW of clean energy in 2030, double that of 2022. And it is not just about energy. Nuclear expansion is reshaping the economy, industry and diplomacy. China positions itself as a global supplier of civil nuclear technology for countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America: an energy diplomacy that combines technological prestige, state financing and its own safety standards. This expansion not only redefines its electrical matrix, but also its international influence: energy has become a diplomatic instrument and a brand of industrial prestige. The century of electrons. China has not stopped burning coal, but it … Read more

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