Spain has reported a whopping 10.2% budget deficit (in relation to Gross Domestic Product) for 2012, much higher than anticipated. The disappointing deficit number is another shortfall in a long string of economic disappointments coming from Spain, which has been mired in an outright depression for several years now. The unemployment rate in Spain currently sits at an astounding 26%, with 55% youth unemployment. 

These are some miserable economic numbers, which are as bad, or even worst, than depression-era figures from the 1930s. To add insult to injury, Bankia, a failing Spanish bank which has been nationalized (thus making it the Spanish government's problem and is contributing to the budget deficit) is to report a 19 billion euro loss for 2012 next week. This will be the highest corporate loss in all of Spain's history. Bankia has been a national tragedy for Spain ever since it was created by merging 7 large savings banks in 2010. When Bankia was first formed, Spanish depositors were sold shares in the bank as a means of raising funding for the new entity. Many savers feel betrayed and claim that they were led to believe that the bank was a safe investment, which proved to be untrue as shares of Bankia quickly plummeted after it's IPO on Madrid's stock market in July of 2011. The bank eventually received a total of 24 billion euro in national bailout money, only 11 months after its IPO. The Spanish Government is expected to own 75% of the bank in the next few months, and the Spanish investors who bought Bankia shares early will be diluted by 97%. 

Unfortunately, it appears that the slow bleed in Spain continues on. The unemployment rate, the deficit and the GDP all seem to be getting worst. To top it off, there are still allegations of serious corruption in Spain's ruling party, with reports of kick-backs and undocumented political donations being distributed to the party's top brass. Sad state of affairs indeed...