In Spain


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Gracias, Standard&Poor's…

President José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero received an unexpected gift a day after national celebrations had offered him the chance to claim Spain's singularity. Risk agency Standard&Poor's announced in Thursday's last minutes that it had downgraded the Spanish sovereign debt qualification to AA-, from AA. S&P's analysts enumerate a few reasons for their decision: “high unemployment, tighter financial conditions, the still high level of private sector debt, and the likely economic slowdown in…


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Gracias, Standard&Poor’s…

President José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero received an unexpected gift a day after national celebrations had offered him the chance to claim Spain's singularity. Risk agency Standard&Poor's announced in Thursday's last minutes that it had downgraded the Spanish sovereign debt qualification to AA-, from AA. S&P's analysts enumerate a few reasons for their decision: “high unemployment, tighter financial conditions, the still high level of private sector debt, and the likely economic slowdown in…




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Is BAA selling airports or buying time? Most probably, both

Best Ways To Win A Guy Back The financial City of Madrid on Monday unanimously recommended investors to support Ferrovial's strategy on its UK operator BAA deals: adjourning forced divesting until the markets set better conditions. While the British Competition Commission has accepted a reversal in sale plans, so BAA will begin by offering one of the two airports it owns in Scotland (Glasgow and Edinburgh) instead of Stansted, the…


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The Guardian and NY Times wonder: “Where's Spain's Law of Transparency?”

From the Spanish newspaper El Mundo | During the last three years, the Spanish government has lashed out against the markets, the speculators, the rating agencies and even against the Anglo-Saxon press because of the ‘distorted image’ it believes they present of Spain and its economy. Spain’s financial minister and deputy president Elena Salgado, and the Secretary of State for the Economy José Manuel Campa have repeatedly had to travel…


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The Guardian and NY Times wonder: “Where’s Spain’s Law of Transparency?”

From the Spanish newspaper El Mundo | During the last three years, the Spanish government has lashed out against the markets, the speculators, the rating agencies and even against the Anglo-Saxon press because of the ‘distorted image’ it believes they present of Spain and its economy. Spain’s financial minister and deputy president Elena Salgado, and the Secretary of State for the Economy José Manuel Campa have repeatedly had to travel…


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Do Spanish banks need independent audit?

The International Monetary Fund is urging Spain to take a page from Ireland and use an independent auditor to evaluate its banks, saying that could boost confidence. Speaking to reporters during the annual meetings in Washington, Antonio Borges, IMF’s European department head, said this should be the right thing to do, since financial market fears of the situation in many European countries have become “excessive,” especially in regard to Italy…


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Spain is part of the hope

After one of the worst sell-off days in weeks and talking about the “European problem”, some brokers find in Spain reasons for hope: “I think there is some reason for optimism with respect of Europe. Spain is an example. They are taking the hard steps. They are going to have an election in November that will likely make the conservative candidate the new Prime Minister of Spain and they will…