Spain Aid Request Awaited as IMF Says Banks Need $46 Billion
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Spain may today move closer to becoming the fourth euro-area nation to receive aid, as the International Monetary Fund said the country’s banks need at least 37 billion euros ($46 billion) to bear a weaker economy.
Euro-region finance ministers held an almost three-hour conference call on Spain today, and Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos will brief reporters at 7:30 p.m. in Madrid. The eurogroup will also issue a statement on the call, said a European official who declined to be named. European Central Bank Vice President Vitor Constancio said yesterday that a Spanish request for a bank bailout is “awaited.”