A Warning to Portugal as Spain Sells Bonds

Spain OKs 2011 austerity budget, saving PM his job
MADRID (AP) - Spain's Parliament passed an Austerity Budget for 2011 by a razor-thin margin on Tuesday, saving embattled Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero his job and giving him a victory in his bid to convince markets that the nation will take control of its finances and avoid a Greek style-bailout. The lower house of Congress passed the Budget in a 177-171 vote, approving a euro122 billion ($160.4 billion) 2011 spending plan that cuts spending 8 percent compared with 2010 and sets f...

Moodys Warns Portugal of Downgrade
Source: Reuters Lisbon (Reuters) - Moody's Investor Service warned on Tuesday it may downgrade Debt-ridden Portugal's A1 rating by one or two notches after a review that will take up to three months, citing weak growth prospects and high borrowing costs. Portugal has moved into the eye of the storm in Europe's debt crisis, with markets worried it will be next to take a Bailout after Ireland and Greece, although Moody's said its solvency was not in question. The premium investors demand to hold...

Portugal faces rating cut, Spanish debt costs rise
LISBON/Madrid (Reuters) - Portugal was put on notice on Tuesday that its Credit Rating could be cut and fellow euro zone debtor Spain had to pay more to issue new Debt, suggesting the currency bloc's crisis will rage unabated in 2011. China, the world's new economic powerhouse, urged European policymakers to demonstrate as a matter of urgency that they can contain the euro zone's debt problems and pull the bloc around. Ratings agency Moody's said it may cut Portugal's Credit Rating by one or two...

China ready to buy $5.3 billion of Portugal debt: report
Lisbon | Wed Dec 22, 2010 4:54am EST Lisbon (Reuters) - China is ready to buy between 4 billion Euros ($5.26 billion) and 5 billion Euros of Portuguese sovereign Debt to help the country ward off pressure in Debt markets, the Jornal de Negocios daily reported on Wednesday. The paper added, without citing sources, that a deal reached between the two governments will lead to China buying Portuguese Debt in auctions or in the secondary markets during the First Quarter of 2011. Portugal has moved...

Moody's warns of lowering Portuguese debt rating
Moody's warned on Tuesday it may lower by one or two notches Portugal's A1 rating owing to uncertainty about growth and borrowing prospects, but said it expected Lisbon to be able to pay its Debts. "In Moody's opinion, Portugal's solvency is not in question," Anthony Thomas, Moody's Vice President and lead analyst for Portugal was quoted as saying in a statement. Moody's emphasised its concern over Portugal's growth prospects, which will affect its long-term ability to repay debts, rather than m...

Greeks strike before austerity budget vote
Athens (Reuters) - Greeks staged a three-hour general strike in Athens on Wednesday against the 2011 Budget which imposes yet more Austerity on the Debt-laden nation, but parliament was set to pass the bill later in the day anyway. Public transport ground to a halt in the city, but some Greeks questioned the point of countless strikes and Protests this year which have failed to divert the government from an Austerity path demanded by the nation's EU/IMF Bailout. At the same time the series of s...

Portugal faces rating cut, Spanish debt costs rise
By Andre Khalip and Nigel Davies LISBON/Madrid | Tue Dec 21, 2010 7:08am EST LISBON/Madrid (Reuters) - Portugal was put on notice on Tuesday that its Credit Rating could be cut and fellow euro zone debtor Spain had to pay more to issue new Debt, suggesting the currency bloc's crisis will rage unabated in 2011. China, the world's new economic powerhouse, urged European policymakers to demonstrate as a matter of urgency that they can contain the euro zone's debt problems and pull the bloc aroun...

Portugal faces rating cut, Spanish debt costs rise
By Andre Khalip and Nigel Davies LISBON/Madrid | Tue Dec 21, 2010 7:08am EST LISBON/Madrid (Reuters) - Portugal was put on notice on Tuesday that its Credit Rating could be cut and fellow euro zone debtor Spain had to pay more to issue new Debt, suggesting the currency bloc's crisis will rage unabated in 2011. China, the world's new economic powerhouse, urged European policymakers to demonstrate as a matter of urgency that they can contain the euro zone's debt problems and pull the bloc aroun...

Greeks strike before austerity budget vote
By Renee Maltezou and Ingrid Melander Athens | Wed Dec 22, 2010 7:39am EST Athens (Reuters) - Greeks staged a three-hour general strike in Athens on Wednesday against the 2011 Budget which imposes yet more Austerity on the Debt-laden nation, but parliament was set to pass the bill later in the day anyway. Public transport ground to a halt in the city, but some Greeks questioned the point of countless strikes and Protests this year which have failed to divert the government from an Austerity p...

Greeks strike before austerity budget vote
By Renee Maltezou and Ingrid Melander Athens | Wed Dec 22, 2010 7:39am EST Athens (Reuters) - Greeks staged a three-hour general strike in Athens on Wednesday against the 2011 Budget which imposes yet more Austerity on the Debt-laden nation, but parliament was set to pass the bill later in the day anyway. Public transport ground to a halt in the city, but some Greeks questioned the point of countless strikes and Protests this year which have failed to divert the government from an Austerity p...

Spanish Christmas lottery hands out $3 billion
MADRID (AP) - Spain's beloved Christmas lottery sprinkled euro2.3 billion ($3 billion) in holiday cheer across the country Wednesday, winnings eagerly welcomed by a nation facing 20 percent Unemployment. The lottery billed as the world's Richest has no single jackpot but operates a complex share-the-wealth system in which thousands of five-digit numbers running from 00000 to 84999 win at least something. It is known as "El Gordo" (The Fat One) and dates back to 1812. Tax-free winnings range fr...

Berlusconi Cites Debt Crisis in Fight to Survive: Euro Credit
Dec. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Silvio Berlusconi’s fight for his political life enters its final round today with the Italian premier using the European Debt crisis as a shield. “We could become targets of international speculators like Greece, Ireland and Portugal, a tragic risk with disastrous consequences,” Berlusconi told supporters in Naples on Dec. 5. “The Ratings agencies have confirmed our top rating but have said that it’s conditional on maintaining political stabi...

Portugal's debt rating set to be cut
The Ratings agency Moody's has said it may cut Portugal's rating by one or two notches within three months, citing weak growth prospects as the government seeks to cut its Debt. The warning came as Spain had to pay more to issue new debt yesterday. ...

Greeks go on strike before austerity vote
Greek unions called a general strike on Wednesday and Athens was paralysed by a 24-hour public transport stoppage in Protest against the government's 2011 Budget, set to pass later as part of an EU/IMF Bailout. The Budget, meant to help stem a Debt crisis that has shaken the euro zone, includes further tax hikes and wage cuts in state-run enterprises, especially in public transport. Fitch said on Tuesday it may cut Greece's Credit Rating next month to junk as both other major rating agencies hav...

FOREX-Euro helped by report China will buy Portugal's debt
Wed Dec 22, 2010 7:49am EST * Euro gets lift from report China will buy Portuguese Debt * ECB tender shows heavy reliance on cheap funding * Euro hovers near all-time low vs Swiss franc (Adds detail, updates prices) By Anirban Nag LONDON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - The euro gained against The Dollar and bounced from all-time lows against the Swiss franc on Wednesday, boosted by a news report that China was ready to buy significant amounts of Portuguese Sovereign Debt. The Jornal de Negocios daily rep...

Greeks go on strike before austerity budget vote
Athens | Wed Dec 22, 2010 5:21am EST Athens (Reuters) - Greek Unions called a general strike on Wednesday and Athens was paralyzed by a 24-hour public transport stoppage in Protest against the government's 2011 Budget, set to pass later as part of an EU/IMF Bailout. The Budget, meant to help stem a Debt crisis that has shaken the euro zone, includes further tax hikes and wage cuts in state-run enterprises, especially in public transport. Fitch said on Tuesday it may cut Greece's Credit Rating...

Crisis-hit Greece gets new ratings warning
Athens, Greece—Fitch Ratings agency on Tuesday warned of a possible downgrade of Greek bonds, adding pressure on the government as it debates the 2011 Budget in parliament. Fitch said that the action "indicates that there is a heightened probability that Greece's sovereign Ratings will be downgraded" from its current BBB- status after a review is completed next month. It follows similar warnings from Ratings agencies Moody's and Standard and Poor's earl...

Ireland's credit rating slashed five notches (by private company that helped precipitate the country's crisis)
© Peter Morrison/AP Thousands of demonstrators march through Dublin last month to Protest against Budget cuts and the EU-IMF Bailout. Moody's downgrades Ireland's Credit Rating and maintains 'negative' outlook on concerns cuts will hurt domestic demand Ireland's Credit Rating has been slashed by five notches by Moody's, which also warned that the country faced an increasingly uncertain economic future. Moody's said that the cost of rescuing Ireland's banking sector meant Irish Debt was ...

It's Europe's Crisis
The recent riots in Athens, London and Rome signal rising insecurity and uncertainty within the European Union. The most profound and widespread challenge is the growing sense that the EU's common currency, the Euro, may not survive in its present form, if at all. The obvious reason is that, as a matter of economics, the euro project gives surrealism a bad name: A currency without a government was always doomed to fail. Now, there are only two choices: 1) Abandon or dramatically shrink the...

Morning Roundup: Have You Heard the One About Basel III?
Deutsche Bank is settling a suit by the U.S. Attorney's office in Manhattan alleging that the company provided tax shelters for wealthy Americans. The alleged Windfall for clients: $29 billion. The settlement payment: $553 million, and an admission of wrongdoing. Hey, those admissions of wrongdoing don't come cheap. [NYT] Former Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd is interested in keeping a letter accusing him of Sexual Harassment under seal. [WSJ] Banks basically set the agenda for how Basel III c...

Greeks go on strike before austerity budget vote
Athens | Wed Dec 22, 2010 3:27am EST Athens (Reuters) - Greek Unions called a general strike on Wednesday and Athens was paralyzed by a 24-hour public transport stoppage in Protest against the government's 2011 Budget, set to pass later as part of an EU/IMF Bailout. The Budget, meant to help stem a Debt crisis that has shaken the euro zone, includes further tax hikes and wage cuts in state-run enterprises, especially in public transport. Fitch said on Tuesday it may cut Greece's Credit Rating...

Spain sells 3.876 bln euros in bonds at higher rates
Madrid (AFP) – Spain raised 3.876 billion Euros (5.096 billion dollars) via an issue of three-month and six-month bonds on Tuesday but it had to pay higher rates on the Debt, The Economy ministry said. The treasury sold 3.0 billion Euros of three-month bills at an average yield -- the rate of return paid to the holder - of 1.804 percent, compared with 1.743 percent when the securities were last sold on November 23. It also sold 876 million Euros of six-month bills at 2.597 percent compar...

Europe still cant turn the page
As we are on the cusp of rapping (pun intended) up 2010, one of the main issues that impacted markets that of sovereign European Debt problems, remains in full force. After seeing Bailouts for Greece and Ireland and now the implementation of a permanent bailout facility we’ve learned that outside of temporarily saving senior bank bondholders, the actions have done nothing to calm investor concerns as funding costs are still very elevated. While markets are thin this week and let’s ...

One Minute Macro Update
US : Futures firm this AM as the light volume week continues. Europe continues to dominate headlines as yesterday saw some firming of the front end and Fed Rate expectations as the back end sold off – erasing mid day gains. This week and next seem more about quietly positioning for next year rather than actual direction. With the CDS roll behind us, we will get a better idea of short risk activity going into the 1Q11. Europe : Post roll, sovereign spreads are wider as news that China would...

World's richest lottery spreads Christmas cheer
Spain's annual Christmas lottery, which has the world's largest total payout, gave out 2.32 billion Euros ($3.05 billion) in prizes to hundreds of lucky winners across the country, which has Europe's highest jobless rate. The top prize of the lottery dubbed "El Gordo" or "The Fat One" went to holders of tickets bearing the number 79250. The winning number appears on 1950 tickets, each of which won 300,000 ($394,000). It was sold in several Spanish cities including Madrid, Barcelona and Alicante....