Catalonia, which represents one fifth of the Spanish economy, has more than €13bn in debt to refinance this year
Posted on 05/25/2012 12:56:05 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
European stock markets tumbled and Spain's borrowing costs shot up as the country's wealthiest autonomous region, Catalonia, called for assistance from central government to pay its bills.
Catalonia, which represents one fifth of the Spanish economy, has more than €13bn in debt to refinance this year
“We don't mind how they do it if it allows us to have enough liquid assets in order to pay, and do it in time, because we all have bills to pay at the end of the month. And this has to be at an homogeneous cost: if not at the European average values, then at least at the Spanish ones, said Catalan President Artur Mas”
The debt burden of Spain's 17 highly devolved regions and toxic property debt held by the country's banks are at the heart of the eurozone debt crisis because investors fear they could strain finances to the point that an international bailout is needed.
A spokesman for the Catalan government later emphasised that Mas was referring to payments that must be met routinely each month and not a specific deadline this month.
Just after the announcement this afternoon Spain's IBEX stock market fell 1.1pc, the yield on ten-year Spanish debt rose to 6.24pc and the euro slumped to its lowest level against the US dollar in two years, $1.2496.
Catalonia, which represents one fifth of the Spanish economy, has more than €13bn in debt to refinance this year, as well as its deficit. All of the regions together have €36bn to refinance this year, as well as an authorised deficit of €15bn.
Last year many of the regions financed debt by falling months or even years behind in payments to providers such as street cleaners and hospital equipment suppliers.
This year the central
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Catalonia, if memory serves me correctly, is a very left-wing part of Spain.
Catalonia is Spain’s version of our left coast (despite being on the wrong side of the country for that analogy to really make sense). Leftists are fully in charge of the local government there, and Spanish leftists rely on the region to build national majorities - much like U.S. democrats rely on California to win national elections.
Well, at least one good thing comes fromthis..for years the Basque separatists have been setting off bombs, demanding a separate nation...heck..maybe now Madrid should just let them go...
And in other California-type news,
Bankia, one of Spain’s largest banks, wants a handout.
ALL of Europe is entitlement crazy!!!!!!!!!!
Bankia, what a scam.
Spain virtually nationalizes four or five failing banks and merges them into Bankia. Then, with the government ownership, it goes public last year. It takes about 18 months for the scheme to become obvious and the bank tanks. Now they want $20 billion, after it fleeced the stockholders.
A mirror of The Obammunist's nationalization of GM. The ruin of GM stock and bondholders and dealers, then using U.S. taxpayers to bail out what was left of GM.
yitbos
S&P Junks Nationalized Bankia, Downgrades Various Other [Spanish] Banks
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/sp-junks-nationalized-bankia-downgrades-various-other-banks
I guess the chickens are coming home to roost for the Catalans.
Your terminology is off; the rebellion was the army rising against the legal government. They had the support of southern & western Spain, while the east (Catalonia) and the north (Basque country) supported the government (both with the intentions of winning a measure of independence from that same government). When the (Red) government moved from Madrid to Barcelona (Catalonia’s capital), the separatists realized they’d been had and would never get autonomy. They didn’t switch sides, but after 1937 it was a communist affair with compulsory military service (that was also when the Reds killed the anarchists in Barelona).
While Catalonia is referred to as the “wealthiest” province, they were also the ones that couldn’t feed themselves - you can’t eat factories, and the “republic” had widespread starvation that brought them to their knees.
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