Madrid: As debt-stricken Ireland heads for a Greek-style EU bailout, Spain is desperately trying to avoid being lumped in the same basket but analysts warn it will have to do more to keep investors happy.
There is "absolutely no reason" to compare Spain with Ireland, Finance Minister Elena Salgado said on Friday.
"We are able to borrow fresh funds at practically the same [cost] as Italy and do much better than Ireland, Portugal and most certainly than Greece.
"I think the markets believe in Spain ... [which] has no need of any extra austerity measures," she said.
In May, the EU and the International Monetary Fund bailed out Greece to the tune of 110 billion euros (Dh550 billion) to prevent a likely debt default that could have torpedoed the entire Eurozone project.
On Friday, EU, IMF and European Central Bank officials began tough talks in Dublin whose public finances have been stretched to the limit by the billions of euros it has spent to keep its devastated banks afloat.
As the Irish debt crisis has deepened, the rates it has to pay to raise fresh cash on the financial markets have risen sharply, with a knock-on effect on Portugal and Spain.
Analysts say an Irish deal is key to easing the crisis and giving other Eurozone states some breathing room to put their finances in order before they too get sucked into the firing line.
