A look at economic developments and activity in major stock markets around the world Friday:
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MADRID — Spain's public debt load has doubled since 2008, the central bank said, as the government sought to talk calm into markets worried that the eurozone's fourth-biggest economy might need a bailout.
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WASHINGTON — Spain should raise taxes and cut government workers' pay to narrow its budget deficit, the International Monetary Fund said.
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LONDON — World stock markets rebounded on anticipation that central banks will act to keep any political instability in Greece following weekend elections from destabilizing the global economy.
Britain's FTSE 100 closed 0.2 percent higher while Germany's DAX gained 1.5 percent. France's CAC-40 rose 1.8 percent.
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TOKYO — In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 closed flat, but Hong Kong's Hang Seng jumped 2.3 percent.
Benchmark stock indexes in Singapore, Taiwan, mainland China and India closed higher. South Korea's Kospi fell 0.7 percent.
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MILAN — The Italian government has announced urgent measures worth €80 billion ($100 billion) to spur economic growth and lower debt as financial markets increasingly worry about the country's finances.
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LONDON — Emergency measures by the U.K. government and Bank of England to help banks and boost lending to businesses and families by offering up to 140 billion pounds ($217 billion) in cheap loans to lenders might have already run into difficulty, according to analysts — there might not be anyone willing to take on the risk of extra credit.
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AMSTERDAM — Moody's has cut the credit ratings of five Dutch banks including ING and ABN AMRO as business is likely to remain difficult due to falling house prices and the European debt crisis.
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NICOSIA, Cyprus — Cyprus' government spokesman says the island nation faces the choice of EU bailout money or a loan from another country to help prop up its Greece-exposed banks.
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