Spain could decide within days or weeks to ask for a bailout for its troubled banking sector, making it the fourth eurozone country to seek help since the EU debt crisis erupted.

Conservative Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy insisted today that the country’s banking sector would not need an international rescue as concern over the bailout of nationalised lender Bankia sent its stock price plummeting while Spain’s borrowing costs soared.

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Carlos Sainz moved into the overall lead of the Dakar Rally after stage five today as overnight leader Stephane Peterhansel was delayed by transmission problems to his BMW.

Giniel De Villiers remains overall leader of the Dakar Rally despite Spaniard Nani Roma winning today’s 13th special stage.

SPAIN’S Carlos Sainz returned to the top of the general standings of the Dakar Rally after winning the seventh stage between Mendoza and Valparaiso yesterday.

TWO days from the arrival in Dakar just as the rally was entering Senegal, the motorbike race was hit by another bombshell yesterday with Marc Coma’s serious crash after only 57 kilometres of the special stage.

BMW secured their first triumph of the 2007 Dakar Rally after Qatari driver Nasser Al Attiyah surged to victory on the 10th stage in Mauritania.

The Passion of the Christ star Jim Caviezel is ready to sign a deal to star as Superman in the long-awaited new films.

As acrid smoke from more than 18,000 acres of charred brush curled skyward today, California officials feared the earlier-than-usual start of the summer wildfires season could make it the most dangerous ever.