Spain

The US: autos Last month I wrote one daily on the auto sector’s effect on non-recession reading. The gist of that post was that the auto sector was positively influencing both production and employment, helping the US avoid outright…

Mario Draghi has a specific plan in mind for how the ECB will be able to arrest the sovereign debt crisis. Two Bloomberg central bank sources told the news agency that ECB President Draghi will have talks with Bundesbank President Jens…

A lot of pundits have come to the same conclusion that I have come to regarding problems in Spain, namely that the market is no longer willing to believe the country is solvent without European-wide intervention. The consensus, therefore,…

I think it goes without saying that the problems for Spanish and Italian regional governments are due to the austerity-induced double dip recession those economies are suffering. The real insight here is that this municipal - double dip…

I just wrote a post for Credit Writedowns Pro on the regional government problems in Spain. The following chart from El Pais is useful in that context.

Today, Spanish newspapers confirmed that a number of regional governments on the verge of bankruptcy must follow Spanish banks in requesting aid from the central government. However, with Spanish central government itself facing record euro…

Daily commentary Just a quick word here on three interlocking stories involving Spain and Germany that have come up via the US and European press. Right now, Spain is at the center of the European sovereign debt crisis. The spread…

Note: Before I begin today's summary, I should note that my schedule will be very spotty over the next three weeks as I am on a working vacation. That means I will not be at work but I will be posting to the blog from time to time. I also…

Below is the full text of the European' Commission's Memorandum of Understanding with Spain regarding the bailout of the Spanish banking sector released earlier today.

Right now the spread between Bunds and the Spanish ten-year is 609 basis points. The catalyst for the increase in Spanish spreads may be the news that the indebted Spanish regional government in Valencia is on the verge of seeking a bailout…