Spain’s reticence to ask for help in managing its escalating debt crisis continues. In the face of protests against austerity measures, a shrinking GDP and one of the highest unemployment rates in the industrialized world, Spanish authorities will likely hold off asking for a bailout package. And, despite modest gains from its austerity plan, Italy harbors fears of contagion from the crisis in Spain. This is a defining moment, notes Senior Fellow Domenico Lombardi.

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Commentary
Will Spain’s Debt Crisis Impact Italy?
Domenico Lombardi
Domenico Lombardi
Director, Policy Observatory
- Luiss University, Rome,
Former Brookings Expert
@domeniclombardi
October 10, 2012