A round-up of the key stories across the specialist financial media, including news that Spain has ruled out the possibility of it seeking a bailout
Spain rules out bailout as De Guindos says banks funded
Spanish economy minister Luis de Guindos ruled out seeking a bailout hours before Standard & Poor’s cut the country’s credit rating to three levels above junk and a report showed unemployment jumped close to a record.
Italy''s borrowing costs rise, Spain downgrade adds to pain
The Italian government''s borrowing costs rose as it sold near the maximum targeted amount of government bonds at an auction on Friday, reflecting investors'' continued concerns about its ability to meet tough budget targets while the economy remains in recession.
Procter & Gamble lowered its profit expectations for the year on Friday as it works on its new restructuring plan and continues to feel some pressure from higher commodity costs.
The board of Barclays was heckled on Friday as its leaders admitted to a fiery annual general meeting that the issue of executive pay had caused it reputational damage.
François Hollande, the Socialist candidate for the French presidency, has claimed support from across Europe for his demand for a growth plan, saying it was not up to Germany to decide what action should be taken in the face of the eurozone crisis.