Spain’s borrowing costs rose dramatically yesterday as the prospect of the country’s regional governments asking for financial rescues amplified fears that Madrid may be forced to request an international sovereign bailout.
The country’s two-year bond yield saw its biggest one-day move since the eurozone debt crisis broke out in early 2010, jumping almost a percentage point at one stage to 6.74 per cent, the highest level since November 1996, before closing at 6.53 per cent.
“Spain is close to losing access to markets entirely,” said John Stopford at Investec Asset Management. “It’s not sustainable to borrow at these levels for very long.”