Spanish stocks jump more than 3.0 %

Spanish stocks continued to push higher on Monday, jumping more than 3.0 percent on belated market optimism over the eurozone debt crisis. Madrid's IBEX-35 index of leading stocks added 3.69 percent to 7,005.30 points after closing with a gain of 6.0 percent on Friday, with banking stocks driving the increase. "The main reason for this strong rise are purchases of two-year (Spanish) debt on the secondary market which have pushed two-year Spanish bond yields to their lowest level in three months," said Soledad Pellon, an analyst at the IG Markets brokerage. "Apparently information has been leaked that the European rescue fund could intervene in this market and the banks have gotten ahead of the action" and are buying debt, she added. European Central Bank head Mario Draghi said Thursday the central bank could intervene directly in the bond markets and for as long as needed, but that it was contingent on governments agreeing to financial bailout conditions. Draghi also said the ECB might consider additional measures to calm markets which have driven borrowing costs for Italy and Spain back near to levels that forced Greece, Ireland and Portugal to seek massive bailouts. On Friday, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy left the door open to the possibility that Madrid would ask for financial aid, saying he would decide once the ECB outlined its measures to tackle the eurozone debt crisis. "In short, it seems likely that Spain will apply for and receive support from both the EFSF and ECB in time, but the funds that are currently available are unlikely to be enough to solve the country's problems," said Jennifer McKeown, an economist at Capital Economics. "Meeting Spain's financing needs until the end of 2013 would cost about 200 billion euros and doing so until end-2014 would raise that to 300 billion euros. The EFSF and ECB together might just about manage this," she added. Meanwhile, trading on the Spanish stock market was also suspended on Monday for several hours due to a techical problem.