Recession deepens in Spain

Spain's recession is deepening according to new figures which also show that the initial downturn was steeper and began earlier than first thought.

Economic output slumped by 0.4% in the second quarter, after a 0.3% drop in the first quarter, the National Statistics Office said.

On an annual basis, gross domestic product fell by 1.3%, much faster than the 0.6% decline registered in the first three months of 2012.

The latest figures revealed that the Spanish recession dates back to 2011, not the start of 2012.