As the correction of economic imbalances in Spain progresses, trends in the real estate market stabilize, and the economy returns to growth, we expect banks' credit provisions to decline further. In our view, the economic risks faced by the Spanish banking system are abating, albeit from a high level, and the trend is stable. Despite the beneficial impact on our solvency measures for NCG Banco (NCG) of our view of a more supportive economic environment in Spain, our assessment of NCG's capital and earnings remains "moderate" according to our criteria. We are therefore affirming our 'B/B' long- and short-term counterparty credit ratings on NCG. The stable outlook balances our view of the potential decrease in extraordinary government support, for which
