STABILIZING SPAIN: The European Union worked toward stabilizing Spain’s finances Tuesday as it backed up the blueprint for the country’s €100 billion bank bailout plan by voting to grant the country an extra year to cut its budget deficit.
THE EXTENSION: Finance ministers from the 27 EU countries approved extending Spain’s deadline for achieving a budget deficit of less than 3 percent of its annual economic output until 2014, said Cyprus’ finance minister and chair of the meeting. The goal for this year is to have a deficit of 6.3 percent of economic output.
Recommended Stories
THE STAKES: Spain is the fourth-largest economy in the eurozone and has been struggling to keep a lid on its government deficit. There are fears that should Spain need a bailout of its own, the eurozone would struggle to finance it, pushing the region further into recession.
