Global Economy, Spain Bailout | featured news

The Spanish economy is falling deeper into recession and depositors are pulling their money out of the banks, figures published on Tuesday showed, while the country's most economically important region, Catalonia, said it needed a major rescue from Madrid.

Corporate storm clouds gathered over Spain again as two major European companies joined the ranks of those saying they were taking steps to reduce exposure to the recession-hit country.

Spain's banks would need 51-62 billion euros ($64-78 billion) in extra capital to weather a serious downturn in the economy, less than a 100-billion-euro aid package offered by the euro zone, independent audits showed on Thursday.