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ISTS Worldwide Inc. on Wednesday named Akash Jain its first president.

The company, which has U.S. headquarters in Fremont, focuses on retail and payments technology.

In this new role, Jain will be responsible for growing the business in rest of the world outside of North America, strategy and development of IP, heading India business and delivery operations high risk personal loans.

ISTS said Akash has more than 22 years of professional experience in the software services industry, working with companies including MasterCard and Reliance.

Click here to read the press release.

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For more than two decades, Ashwin Patel has been bringing Indian and Pakistani grains and spices — as well as the latest Bollywood movies — to St. Louis through Seema Enterprises, his grocery business.

Patel can often be found behind the cash register at the store, at 10635 Page Avenue. He knows most of his customers by name, some of whom come from as far away as Columbia, Mo., and Carbondale, Ill., to stock up on groceries every month.

Inside his stores, customers can find a couple of dozen types of rice — parboiled, kerala, ponni, Basmati and so on. It’s also one of the only places St. Louisans can find gongura and methi leaves, lychee and green mango juices, Indian-style frozen hot pockets, henna, toothpaste made with neem herbs, and shelves full of teas from the region.

Patel immigrated to the United States from India in 1978. In 1985, he and his wife, Raksha, took over Seema Enterprises after the store’s former owner passed away.
The Page store, which first opened in 1977, was one of the first Indian groceries in the Midwest, according to Patel.

In 1991, he expanded to a second location to Manchester Road, wanting to be closer to the nearby Hindu temple and the growing South Asian population moving into west St. Louis County.

In the last two years, he’s nearly doubled the size of both stores so he has more space to display the ever-expanding variety of South Asian frozen and dried goods that are increasingly available.

Over the years, Patel has also helped fill a void in the community by sponsoring movie screenings and musical performances by some of Bollywood’s biggest musical stars including the likes of Asha Bhosle, Sonu Nigam and Jagjit Singh, to name a few.

How has your business changed in the last 25 years?

It’s a big change. In that time, there were not that many things available, just rice, flour, dals (lentils). We didn’t have frozen food and ready-to-eat meals then, which are becoming much more popular with this new generation. … At that time, there were only one or two kinds of rice: long-grain or jasmine. Basmati was hard to get back then (and it was so expensive and hence, less popular.) Now we sell almost 25 different kinds of rice. Tamil people eat a different kind of rice. Telugu people use a different rice. …

With the popularity of Indian cooking, are more of your customers non-South Asians? Or is your core business still South Asians?

We have non-South Asian people — they are at least 15 percent of our customers. They mostly come here looking for spices and rice.

A lot of the non-South Asians are becoming vegetarian. So they come to Indian grocery stores to see what they can cook. … And these days, more people are becoming samosa-lovers.

You sponsor a lot of movie screenings of Bollywood movies in area theaters. When did you start that and why?

We started doing that in 1994 … I love Indian movies. When I was growing up in India, I used to watch the first day, first showing of new movies. When we came here, we were out of touch with Indian movies for 15 to 20 years. … Then distributors started to bring the movies to the big cities in 1993-94. So we tried it. … Bollywood has become so popular …

Movie rentals used to be a big part of your business, too, right? Do you still do that?

At one point, movie rentals were 25 percent of the business. But we discontinued that about seven months ago.

Nobody rents anymore. The Internet is bringing more mischief with the piracy thing. … We were paying more money to the distributors and less people were renting them or going to the theaters. Nowadays, many people have Indian satellite channels. About 75 percent of South Asian households have a satellite TV. And they can watch 24 hours of shows and news in their own native languages. …

We also used to sell audio CDs, too. But nobody buys it anymore. They just download it.

Are you worried about the future of your business as the first generation of South Asian immigrants ages and there are more second and third generation South Asians?

The kids who are born here, they are not going to be coming here as much. … I think it might survive but in a different way.

With them, items like Indian hot pockets and naan pizza are really popular. It won’t be the same, but we’ll be OK for at least 10 to 15 years. … But it’s going to be changing.

The kids who were born here, they still have roots. But the newer generation, we don’t know. My son likes Indian food. But the next generation?

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The regular lunch crowd waiting to enter Crown Candy Kitchen at North 14th Street and St. Louis Avenue may soon find another reason to visit the block.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is set for July 29 to launch the fully renovated Crown Square, a residential and commercial development in the 2600 and 2700 blocks of North 14th.

The development, offering 80 residential units and 35,000 square feet of commercial and retail uses, spans 27 buildings and 2½ acres of green space.

The developers, two nonprofit community groups, are optimistic the $35 million project will bring more traffic to that once-booming north St. Louis neighborhood and help lead a renaissance for the area.

"This is the biggest project that we’ve ever been involved with," said Sean Thomas, executive director of the Old North St. Louis Restoration Group, which teamed up with the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance.

"It is very close to being ready," Thomas said. "Work to reopen the street is the last component to be finished."

In fact, those two blocks of North 14th will be reopened to vehicular traffic for the first time in 33 years. The buildings there had fronted on a failed pedestrian mall since 1977, when urban planners believed that was the best way to attract business to the neighborhood.

However, prospective shoppers and clients of businesses along what was called the 14th Street Mall didn’t like parking behind the buildings and having to walk around to the front doors.

So most businesses along the pedestrian mall eventually closed.

In 2005, the Regional Housing and Community Development Alliance and Old North St. Louis Restoration Group decided to partner to redevelop the mall, which had become an eyesore.

The buildings were acquired over almost two years, from late 2005 through summer of 2007, for about $2 million, developers said.

Funding for the project came from a variety of sources. The development alliance provided a $2 million predevelopment loan. Another $12 million came from state and federal tax credits, and the rest through individual and institutional contributions.

Thomas said he was especially encouraged about the development’s prospects because nearly 70 of 80 housing units in the redevelopment area already have been leased to tenants.

"The challenge now is in leasing out the commercial spaces," he said. "But we have been getting a lot of interest. We want to get them out here to see it and look at the possibilities."

At least one restaurant and some retail businesses are in discussions with real estate agents for the developers, Thomas said.

Two new businesses already have moved into Crown Square, even as the work continues outside on the street. Norah Ryan has opened her law office there, and Therapy, a women’s clothing store, is preparing for its grand opening soon.

Ryan said she was happy about deciding to move her office from Clayton to Crown Square.

"There’s a wonderful sense of community, and a lot of things are going on here," she said.

Ryan, who was familiar with the neighborhood, said the full impact of the redevelopment struck her while taking a friend on a driving tour of the city last fall. "I thought, ‘Wow! That’s pretty neat.’"

And she said her new office was just the right size for her law practice, at about 900 square feet of renovated space.

Thomas acknowledged that a fear of crime has kept some businesses and clients away from the neighborhood for years. But he noted that crime rates in the area had gone down in recent years, and that many of the area’s residents were actively involved in Neighborhood Watch and other programs to keep the area safe.

Thomas said he could foresee a day when the development would rival the neighborhood’s heyday of the 1920s through the early 1950s. In addition to small businesses, that stretch of North 14th once had the first J.C. Penney store in the St. Louis area, he said, adding that the area also had Woolworths and J.J. Newberry’s five-and-dime stores.

"You could argue that this was the main street of a small town, and it could become that way again," he said.

E.M. Harris Construction Co., based in St. Louis, began work on the residential part of Crown Square late in 2007. Restoration of the commercial buildings began in 2008. The project was named in honor of Crown Candy Kitchen, which has anchored the neighborhood for years.

The buildings in Crown Square date from as old as 1860 to the 1920s. Developers restored each building to the era in which it was built, Thomas said.

"This project reflects what cities actually look like — they evolve and change over time," he said.

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U.S. stocks soared Thursday, with the major indexes gaining about 3%, after Chinese officials dismissed reports that they’re reviewing their nation’s investment in European bonds amid concerns about the continent’s debt problems.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) added 285 points, or 2.9%, and finished at 10,259. American Express (AXP, Fortune 500), Intel (INTC, Fortune 500) and Alcoa (AA, Fortune 500) led the advance, rising more than 5%.

The S&P 500 (SPX) index rose 35 points, or 3.3%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) composite increased 82 points, or 3.7%.

Stocks erased gains in the last hour of trade Wednesday, with the Dow finishing below 10,000 for the first time in three months, as the focus shifted from strong economic reports to lingering concerns about global economic recovery and the weakening euro.

But investors’ confidence got a boost Thursday after China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange refuted reports that the country was reconsidering its holdings in European bonds, calling the claims "groundless."

"China has always firmly supported the EU integration process. We support the European Union and the International Monetary Fund package of financial stability measures being taken," said agency chief Yi Gang in a statement.

China holds $2.45 trillion of foreign exchange reserves, with U.S. Treasury debt and Euro zone government bonds making up key investments.

"The news out of China denying rumors that they’re going to reevaluate their European assets sparked a nice rally," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Avalon Partners.

Had the rumors been true, Cardillo said the euro would have crashed and sent markets into a free fall.

"That kind of move would have been detrimental for China, too," Cardillo said. "If Europe falls apart, so will the global economy."

Although worries about Europe’s debt problems will continue, Cardillo said it’s only a matter of time before fears subside.

The CBOE Volatility index, or the VIX (VIX), Wall Street’s fear factor, sank more than 14%.

"With the facts we have now, we know Europe’s troubles will impact economic activity on a global scale, but not by much and that’s key," Cardillo said.

But markets could continue to remain volatile as investors remain jittery.

"Anytime we see moves of this kind of magnitude, even if it’s positive, investors take a little more caution," said Russel Lundeberg, chief investment officer at Barrett Capital Management. "A nervous environment keeps volatility high."

Economy: The government revised its reading on first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP), the broadest measure of U.S. economic activity, to an annual growth rate of 3%. The figure was below expectations of 3.3%, according to a consensus of economists surveyed by Briefing.com. The initial reading, released last month, was a 3.2% rate.

But the revision also showed that the rate of consumer spending has doubled since the fourth quarter of 2009, and remains consistent with the forecast for annual GDP to grow between 3% and 3 payday advance.5% in 2010, Cardillo said.

The Labor Department said filings for first-time unemployment insurance fell last week to 460,000 from a revised 474,000 the previous week. Economists were expecting claims to fall even lower, to 455,000.

Companies: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Fortune 500) executives told lawmakers that the widespread recall of children’s Tylenol medicines earlier this month was a precautionary measure taken against "remote" health risks. But the Food and Drug Administration is investigating reports of at least 775 serious side effects from the recalled drugs.

Johnson & Johnson’s stock was the only Dow component to slip into the red Thursday, falling 0.2%. Since the May 1 recall, the company’s shares have fell more than 7%.

BP (BP) executives also took the hot seat on Capitol Hill in ongoing testimony about the Gulf oil spill. The company’s shares soared 7% after an Oppenheimer analyst raised the stock’s rating, saying that the recent sell-off has gone too far. Shares of BP have dipped 30% since the April 20 explosion.

Apple’s (AAPL, Fortune 500) market capitalization overtook Microsoft’s (MSFT, Fortune 500) for the first time in 20 years at the close Wednesday, making it the second most valuable company in the nation after Exxon Mobil (XOM, Fortune 500). Both tech giants added about 4%.

World markets: Stocks around the world also advanced on the news from China. In Europe, the CAC 40 in France jumped 3.4%. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 3.1% and the DAX in Germany also gained 3.1%

Asian shares also finished higher. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong and Japan’s Nikkei added 1.2%. The Shanghai Composite gained 1.2%.

Dollar and commodities: The euro, which has seesawed since falling to a four-year low last week amid concerns about the region’s economic stability, rebounded against the dollar, rising 1.5% against the U.S. currency.

The greenback was down 1.3% against the British pound, but it was up 1% versus the Japanese yen.

The weaker dollar gave momentum to oil prices. Oil for July delivery rose $3.04, or 4.3%, to $74.55 a barrel.

Gold for June delivery dipped $1.50 to settle at $1,211.60 per ounce.

Bonds: Treasury prices tumbled Thursday, pushing the benchmark 10-year note’s yield up to 3.35%. Bond prices and yields move in opposite directions.

Trading volume: Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners beat losers nearly 13 to one on volume of just under 1.4 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers topped decliners seven to one on volume of 2.4 billion shares.  

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Peter A. Dea, founder and CEO of Cirque Resources LP, has been named "Wildcatter of the Year" by the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States.

IPAMS presented its highest award to Dea Saturday night at the industry group's annual Wildcatter Gala, held at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

"Peter is one the great explorers and ambassadors of our industry," Marc Smith, IPAMS' executive director, said in a statement.

"His humility and civic engagement have opened many doors," Smith added. "Peter stirs the imagination of thought leaders across the political spectrum with compelling reasons to see natural gas as national treasure, capable of helping our nation meet its most pressing economic, environmental and energy security priorities. Peter and his wife Cathy demonstrate an incredible commitment to science, conservation and education."

The group says the award recognizes "the unique contributions and accomplishments of one industry individual, particularly regarding: (1) successful longtime natural gas and oil exploration and production in the Intermountain West, (2) community service, and (3) support of oil and natural gas industry activities and organizations."

It's IPAMS' 28th annual presentation of the Wildcatter of the Year award. Previous winners have included Edward J. Ackman, George G. Anderman, William W. Ballard, William J. Barrett, Robert L. Bayless, Wayne T. (Dusty) Biddle, Cortlandt S. Dietler, Raymond Duncan, George H. Fancher, Samuel Gary William C. Goodin, Jim Lightner, Kenneth D. Luff, Frederick R. Mayer, Mick McMurry, F. H. (Mick) Merelli, Rex Monahan, Robert L. Nance, Thomas A. Petrie, Conley P. Smith, John C. Snyder, H. A. (Dave) True, Harry Trueblood, Jr., Thomas G. Vessels, James B. Wallace, Donald L. Wolf, and Harvey E. Yates.

IPAMS released this biography of Dea:

Peter A. Dea is a Founder, President and CEO of Cirque Resources LP, a privately-funded oil and gas exploration and production company focused on unconventional resource plays, predominantly in the Rocky Mountain region. Cirque has leased over 600,000 acres in emerging exploration plays since its inception in 2007.

Dea was formerly President, CEO and a Director of Western Gas Resources, Inc. (NYSE: WGR) from 2001 through its merger with Anadarko Petroleum Corporation in 2006. Dea served as Chairman and CEO of Barrett Resources Corporation (NYSE: BBR) from 1999 until its sale in 2001. He is currently Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and he serves on the boards of Western State College, Alliance for Choice in Education, IPAMS (Vice President 2002 – 2007), American Geologic Institute Foundation, CU-Denver GEM program, formerly of COGA (President 2001), and is a member of the Colorado Forum, a public policy advisory group.

Dea graduated with a B.A. degree in Geology from Western State College of Colorado in 1976 and earned a M.S. degree in Geology at University of Montana in 1981. He attended the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program in 1999. After ten years at Exxon Company USA, Dea joined Barrett Resources in 1993. At Barrett, Dea played a direct role in the discovery of Cave Gulch Field (shallow and deep reservoirs) and in the merger with Plains Petroleum Corporation. He also led the company into the Powder River and Raton Basin CBM plays. As CEO of Barrett, he negotiated the sales transaction to Williams in 2001, after Shell initiated a hostile takeover, realizing a 67% premium to the pre-Shell trading price. During his tenure at Barrett the Company’s enterprise value grew from $200 million to $2.8 billion, and the Wall Street Journal recognized Barrett as delivering the best 10-year average compounded annual return to shareholders among 33 major and independent oil and gas companies. While CEO at Western Gas Resources, the company’s value more than quintupled from $1 billion to $5.3 billion with its sale to Anadarko realizing a 49% premium to the pre-announcement share price. Under Dea’s leadership, Forbes listed Western Gas Resources in their Best Managed Companies in America edition, for 5-year annualized returns of 30%. BusinessWeek ranked WGR as the 23rd best performing company in Standard & Poor’s Mid-Cap 400 Index and WGR also became a Fortune 500 company.

In Denver, Dea co-founded the Explorer’s Club, First Thursday Dinner Club, Colorado Energy Coalition at MDEDC and Partnership of the West. In addition, Dea founded geology scholarship programs at Western State College and University of Montana. He and his wife Cathy established the Dea Family Foundation serving education, science and conservation efforts. They live in Golden, Colorado, and have three sons, Drake, Austin and Cort. They enjoy skiing, horseback riding, mountain and road biking and hiking. As a Roundup Rider of the Rockies, Dea enjoys a 100-mile horseback ride in Colorado’s high country each year. Dea has been an active mountaineer, climbing many high altitude peaks up to 22,205’ and he has participated in multi-week climbing, skiing and whitewater kayaking expeditions in North and South America, Nepal and Africa. He has also climbed 50 of Colorado’s highest peaks.

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As you might expect, Missouri’s 13th and final casino license is drawing a crowd.

Fifteen groups — real estate developers, gambling companies, local governments — told the Missouri Gaming Commission this week that they were interested in opening a casino when the President Casino closes next month. At least five of them would put it in the St. Louis region.

All are very preliminary. The letters basically tell state officials a company is interested. Next, the commission will hold a public meeting explaining the process, and set a deadline for formal applications. But they give a picture of who might build what where.

Among the interested:

— St. Louis businessman Jim Koman, a part owner of the Casino Queen who through a separate company called Casino Celebration holds a site just south of the Chain of Rocks bridge, where he would put a $125 million riverboat casino.

— Attorney Brad Lakin, who leads North County Development LLC, which has won rezoning approval to put a casino complex on 350 acres south of the Columbia River Bottoms.

— Creve Coeur-based Isle of Capri Casinos, which didn’t specify a site and appears to be eyeing at least two. It was the only large casino company to raise its hand.

— West Alton Partners LLC, a group that tried unsuccessfully to put a riverboat in that small north St. Louis County town in 1996.

— Blue Sky Development, which owns a casino in Indiana and is interested in an unspecified site in the city of St. Louis.

— Three separate groups that are eying Cape Girardeau, including one led by Joe Uram, former chief financial officer of Argosy Gaming.

— Coastal Capital Management LLC, a New York-based casino developer run by Kenneth Shea, who led gambling operations for Carl Icahn’s Icahn Capital hedge fund.

— Ingenus Management, a Minnesota-based casino consultancy company, which is trying to win a license in Ottumwa, Iowa.

— The city of Sugar Creek, Mo., near Kansas City, which narrowly lost out on a new casino in 2008 when voters capped licenses at the current 13.

Other groups can still apply, and any proposal will need to partner with an experienced casino operator to actually win the license, said LeAnn McCarthy.

That will probably winnow down some of the proposals. So will the market study the commission plans to conduct.

"Anyone can throw out a letter of interest," McCarthy said. "But soon we’ll start to pare down."

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The city of Denver anticipates saving at least $11 million a year because 322 employees accepted a retirement incentive offer, Mayor John Hickenlooper announced Tuesday.

But the city also plans to fill about half of the positions left vacant by the retirements "to avoid interruption of vital services to the community," a statement from the mayor's office said.

Hickenlooper proposed the voluntary retirement incentive program for senior Denver workers in August as a way to cut the cash-strapped city’s payroll costs.

The offer was for workers covered by the Denver Employees Retirement Plan. Eligible employees needed to be either at least 65 years old, or at least 55 years old with their age and years of city service adding up to 75 or more.

Hickenlooper offered those workers $500 a month for 30 months after their retirement.

There were 932 employees eligible for the retirement incentive program, and 322 took the offer.

"The retirement incentive program was a win-win for the city and for employees who chose to accept the offer," Hickenlooper said in the statement. "… We are grateful for the service these employees provided to our community and wish them well in the next chapter of their lives."

The retirements also will help the city reduce the number of workers it intends to lay off to trim the budget, officials said.

When the proposed city budget was released in September, officials anticipated 176 layoffs. Now, they expect fewer than 80 workers to be let go.

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The U.S. services sector, which represents about 80 percent of U.S. economic activity, grew for the second consecutive month in October, while the labor market also showed signs of improvement in data published on Wednesday.

The U.S. Institute for Supply Management’s services index slipped to 50.6 last month from 50.9 in September, below economists’ median forecast for a rise to 51.5, with the dividing line between growth and contraction being 50.

Although the report showed growth in the sector, analysts were disappointed in the employment index, which fell to 41.1 in October from 44.3 in September.

“It’s disappointing that it didn’t hit the consensus number but the good news is that the index stayed above 50,” said John Canally, economist, with LPL Financial in Boston.

“New orders are very strong for two months in a row and inventories are being restocked. The big disappointment is the employment number which dropped as opposed to the manufacturing sector index earlier this week.”

The report was roughly in line with surveys in Europe earlier on Wednesday suggesting service sector activity expanded at its fastest in 22 months in October in the euro zone, and in Britain at its briskest since August 2007, when the global credit crunch struck.

LABOR MARKET HURTS LESS

In other U.S. data on Wednesday, private sector companies reduced jobs in October at the slowest pace in more than a year, shedding 203,000 positions, fewer than a revised 227,000 jobs lost in September, according to the ADP Employer Services LLC report.

The October private job loss was the smallest since July 2008.

“There are still a lot of people out there feeling pain,” said Macroeconomic Advisers’ chairman Joel Prakken. “But we are heading in the right direction.”

The ADP figures are seen by some analysts as a proxy for the government’s closely watched report on non-farm payrolls. The U.S. Labor Department will release its October labor report on Friday at 8:30 a.m. EST.

Analysts polled recently by Reuters projected U.S. payrolls likely shrank by 175,000 in October, compared with a 263,000 decline in September.

Economists do not expect job growth to take place until 2010.

“We did have a month-on-month improvement in ADP but we are still losing jobs, and the 10 percent unemployment barrier has huge psychological significance,” said Michael Woolfolk, senior currency analyst at BNY Mellon in New York.

Still, the pace of private job losses has slowed since the 736,000 drop in March, according to ADP data. 

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Hospital operator Universal Health Services Inc reported higher quarterly net earnings on Thursday as revenue rose slightly, operating margins improved while costs were cut.

Third-quarter net earnings were $51.07 million, or $1.03 per diluted share, in the third quarter, compared with $36.99 million, or 73 cents per diluted share, in the year-ago period.

Analysts had expected earnings of 88 cent per share, on average, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose to $1.295 billion in the quarter from $1.244 billion a year ago.

The provision doubtful accounts, or bad debt, rose to $141.09 million in the quarter from $125 million in the year ago period.

In a telephone interview, Chief Financial Officer Steve Filton said he expects bad debt to continue to rise cheap payday advance.

“It’s difficult to predict, but my best guess is that, as long as there’s unemployment, we’ll see a gradual increase,” Filton said.

But even in Las Vegas, Universal Health’s biggest market, where economic weakness is pronounced, the company performed well, as it held the line on spending, he said.

Filton said he has noticed that capital spending among hospitals has started to thaw a bit, although he said he expects hospital CFOs to remain somewhat cautious.

(Reporting by Debra Sherman; editing by Andre Grenon)

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Spain’s unemployment rate, the highest in Europe, held at 17.9 percent in the third quarter as state stimulus projects put people to work, even as the government warned the figure would rise again by year-end.

The number of unemployed fell by 14,100 from the previous three months to 4.12 million people, the Madrid-based National Statistics Institute said today in an e-mailed statement. From a year earlier, 1.52 million people joined the unemployment lines. The rate was expected to rise to 18.7 percent, according to a Bloomberg News survey of eight economists.

Spain’s government has implemented one of the largest stimulus plans in Europe, putting more than 400,000 people to work widening sidewalks and building cycle tracks in cities. The International Monetary Fund forecasts unemployment will exceed 20 percent next year, and joblessness among young people is almost twice that level, sapping support for Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero.

Spain’s opposition People’s Party extended its lead over the ruling Socialists to five percentage points, the most since Zapatero was first elected in 2004, according to an Oct. 12 poll in newspaper Publico. Zapatero’s Socialists would win 38 percent of the vote compared with 43 percent for the PP if elections were held now, said the poll prepared by Publiscopio. Unemployment is Spaniards’ main concern, according to the state- run Center for Sociological Research.

Construction Boom

Finance Minister Elena Salgado said yesterday that the fourth quarter could bring worse jobless data as the third quarter was traditionally more favorable for employment.

Once the motor of job-creation in the euro region, Spain is now suffering from the end of a decade-long construction boom that has left a glut of 1 million new, unsold homes and produced the deepest recession in more than half a century. The IMF expects the Spanish economy to contract 0.7 percent in 2010, while the euro area, U.S., and U.K. post full-year growth.

Rising joblessness is swelling the budget deficit as the government has extended jobless benefits for the long-term unemployed and is implementing stimulus measures worth 2.3 percent of gross domestic product. The shortfall will swell to 9.5 percent of GDP this year, one of the largest in the euro region, before narrowing to 8.1 percent in 2010.

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