Spanish Government

The Dow broke a six-day losing streak, notching a small gain after the US released better unemployment numbers. Claims for benefits declined to 367,000, the lowest level in a month. And signs that the Spanish government will help its banking sector and Greek leaders' attempt to form a new government eased some concerns over Europe's debt woes.

The Dow broke a six-day losing streak, notching a small gain after the US released better unemployment numbers. Claims for benefits declined to 367,000, the lowest level in a month. And signs that the Spanish government will help its banking sector and Greek leaders' attempt to form a new government eased some concerns over Europe's debt woes.

TAMPA - A 17-ton haul of silver coins, lost for two centuries in the wreck of a sunken Spanish galleon, began its journey back to its home country yesterday after the deep-sea explorers who lifted it to the surface lost their claim to ownership. Two massive cargo planes - Spanish military C-130s - took off just from a Florida Air Force base with 594,000 silver coins and other artifacts aboard. They were packed into the same white plastic buckets in which they were brought to the United States by Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration in May 2007.

TAMPA - A 17-ton haul of silver coins, lost for two centuries in the wreck of a sunken Spanish galleon, began its journey back to its home country yesterday after the deep-sea explorers who lifted it to the surface lost their claim to ownership. Two massive cargo planes - Spanish military C-130s - took off just from a Florida Air Force base with 594,000 silver coins and other artifacts aboard. They were packed into the same white plastic buckets in which they were brought to the United States by Tampa-based Odyssey Marine Exploration in May 2007.

TAMPA -- The Spanish government has filed claims in federal court over a shipwreck that a Florida firm found laden with Colonial-era treasure, an attorney said yesterday. If the vessel was Spanish or was removed from that country's waters, any treasure would belong to Spain, said James Goold, an attorney representing the government. "It's a very well-established principle under Spanish, US, and international law that a government such as the kingdom of Spain has not abandoned its sunken ships or sunken property, and that a company like Odyssey Marine Exploration may not conduct recovery operations...

BRUSSELS — European Union leaders say they are not planning to talk about possible financial help for Spain at a summit today amid rumors that it could follow Greece in seeking a bailout. German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters yesterday that she will push for tighter budget rules and will encourage Spain to keep up efforts to make labor reforms and budget cuts. “One should first see what Spain has achieved in recent weeks,’’ she said on her way to a meeting of center-right leaders in Brussels.

MADRID - The European Union has launched an investigation into a prized Spanish wetland that has turned bone dry through mismanagement of water resources and is on fire underground, white smoke now rising from areas where fish once swam. The EU wants the Spanish government to explain how it plans to save Las Tablas de Daimiel National Park in the central Castilla-La Mancha region, Barbara Helfferich, European Commission spokeswoman, said yesterday. The park, one of Spain’s few wetlands, is classified as a UNESCO biosphere site and an EU-protected area because of...

Spain's new government quickly sought to downplay remarks by its finance minister that raised doubts Friday over whether Madrid could deliver its goal of cutting its budget deficit. Cristobal Montoro said in an interview with The Financial Times Deutschland that the target of 4.4 percent of gross domestic product this year was based on "outdated" growth forecasts by the previous government of 2.3 percent growth in 2012. The new government expects Spain to go into recession this quarter.

MADRID - Spanish legislators voted yesterday to change a law that let judges indict Osama bin Laden and Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, narrowing its scope to cases with a clear link to this country and yielding to criticism that Spain should not act like a global cop. The reform will not be retroactive, so the dozen or so cases now being investigated at the National Court will continue, the Justice Ministry said. These include investigations of alleged Chinese abuses in Tibet, an Israeli air force bombing in Gaza that killed 14 civilians, and alleged torture at the US prison for terrorism...

BARCELONA -- The wealthy semiautonomous Catalonia region gained sweeping new powers to run its own affairs yesterday, as voters overwhelmingly approved a blueprint that some fear could leave Spain's government cash-strapped and powerless. Nearly 3 out of 4 voters said 'yes' to the plan, known as the statute, in a binding referendum that culminated more than two years of heated debate. "The people of Catalonia have written a page in our history," said Catalan regional president, Pasqual Maragall.

Spain's new government quickly sought to downplay remarks by its finance minister that raised doubts Friday over whether Madrid could deliver its goal of cutting its budget deficit. Cristobal Montoro said in an interview with The Financial Times Deutschland that the target of 4.4 percent of gross domestic product this year was based on "outdated" growth forecasts by the previous government of 2.3 percent growth in 2012. The new government expects Spain to go into recession this quarter.

The Spanish government has approved key changes to the labor market in a bid to chip away at a 21 percent jobless rate and reassure investors worried about the slow economic recovery. The reform package was approved as an emergency decree at a Cabinet meeting Friday, but it will be opened up for debate in Parliament and possible amendments later this year. The government is acting after months of talks between unions and business leaders collapsed. Both sides have criticized parts of the government package, which changes collective bargaining rules.

BRUSSELS — European Union leaders say they are not planning to talk about possible financial help for Spain at a summit today amid rumors that it could follow Greece in seeking a bailout. German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters yesterday that she will push for tighter budget rules and will encourage Spain to keep up efforts to make labor reforms and budget cuts. “One should first see what Spain has achieved in recent weeks,’’ she said on her way to a meeting of center-right leaders in Brussels.

MADRID - The European Union has launched an investigation into a prized Spanish wetland that has turned bone dry through mismanagement of water resources and is on fire underground, white smoke now rising from areas where fish once swam. The EU wants the Spanish government to explain how it plans to save Las Tablas de Daimiel National Park in the central Castilla-La Mancha region, Barbara Helfferich, European Commission spokeswoman, said yesterday. The park, one of Spain’s few wetlands, is classified as a UNESCO biosphere site and an EU-protected area because of...

MADRID - Spanish legislators voted yesterday to change a law that let judges indict Osama bin Laden and Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet, narrowing its scope to cases with a clear link to this country and yielding to criticism that Spain should not act like a global cop. The reform will not be retroactive, so the dozen or so cases now being investigated at the National Court will continue, the Justice Ministry said. These include investigations of alleged Chinese abuses in Tibet, an Israeli air force bombing in Gaza that killed 14 civilians, and alleged torture at...

TAMPA -- The Spanish government has filed claims in federal court over a shipwreck that a Florida firm found laden with Colonial-era treasure, an attorney said yesterday. If the vessel was Spanish or was removed from that country's waters, any treasure would belong to Spain, said James Goold, an attorney representing the government. "It's a very well-established principle under Spanish, US, and international law that a government such as the kingdom of Spain has not abandoned its sunken ships or sunken property, and that a company like Odyssey Marine Exploration may not conduct...

MADRID -- Rocio Jurado, a singer and actress who was a beloved figure in Spain and Latin America over a career spanning more than four decades, died yesterday after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 61. Ms. Jurado's death was announced by her brother and agent, Amador Mohedano, outside Madrid. Ms. Jurado was hospitalized in Madrid after returning to Spain in late March after two months of cancer treatment in Houston. She was first diagnosed with cancer in 2004.

The Spanish government has approved key changes to the labor market in a bid to chip away at a 21 percent jobless rate and reassure investors worried about the slow economic recovery. The reform package was approved as an emergency decree at a Cabinet meeting Friday, but it will be opened up for debate in Parliament and possible amendments later this year. The government is acting after months of talks between unions and business leaders collapsed. Both sides have criticized parts of the government package, which changes collective bargaining rules.

BARCELONA -- The wealthy semiautonomous Catalonia region gained sweeping new powers to run its own affairs yesterday, as voters overwhelmingly approved a blueprint that some fear could leave Spain's government cash-strapped and powerless. Nearly 3 out of 4 voters said 'yes' to the plan, known as the statute, in a binding referendum that culminated more than two years of heated debate. "The people of Catalonia have written a page in our history," said Catalan regional president, Pasqual Maragall.

MADRID -- Rocio Jurado, a singer and actress who was a beloved figure in Spain and Latin America over a career spanning more than four decades, died yesterday after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. She was 61. Ms. Jurado's death was announced by her brother and agent, Amador Mohedano, outside Madrid. Ms. Jurado was hospitalized in Madrid after returning to Spain in late March after two months of cancer treatment in Houston. She was first diagnosed with cancer in 2004.