Standard & Poor's--"We are revising the outlook on the Kingdom of Spain to negative from stable"

The following is a press release from Standard & Poor's: --

We are revising the outlook on the Kingdom of Spain to negative from stable: ", and affirming the ＇AA ＇ long-term and ＇A-1 ＇ short-term sovereign credit ratings. -- Compared to our expectations when we lowered our rating on the sovereign in January 2009, we now believe that Spain will experience a more pronounced and persistent deterioration in its public finances and a more prolonged period of economic weakness versus its peers. -- In our opinion, reducing Spain＇s sizable fiscal and economic imbalances requires strong policy actions, which have not yet materialized.