" Will they wont they" has been the story for sometime regarding the Spanish need to borrow from the EU central purse, to bail out it's banking industry, in trouble due to the collapse in the housing market and associated bad debts from residents unable to pay mortgages and builders going bust, not able to sell finished dwellings.

Well they are.....as Spain requests Euro 37 billion of aid specifically to deal with the recapitalisation and reorganisation of four major banks hit badly by the faliure of many companies involved in construction.

This is not a surprise to the markets, who have been waiting for months for clarification as to the exact amount Spain will require.The amount requested will not make that much of a dent in the overall firepower the EU authorities have at their disposal for any future requests from the members and it removes one more negative variable from the overall view on the Euro crisis.