Spanish Economy Strengthens While Consumer Prices Drop

Domestic demand drove faster economic growth in Spain last quarter, while consumer prices extended a decline in August that has sparked a debate about another round of European Central Bank stimulus.

Gross domestic product rose 0.6 percent as household spending and investment advanced, the National Statistics Institute in Madrid said today, confirming its first estimate. Consumer prices fell 0.5 percent in August from a year ago, the sharpest decline since Oct. 2009, it said in a separate release.