Spanish financial sector affected by record rate of unpaid loans. The rate of unpaid loans in the Spanish financial sector at the end of 2009 reached a record 5.07%, as opposed to 3.37% at the end of 2008, indicated the Bank of Spain. The highest level ever reached occurred in 1996, with 5.31%. The bursting of the real estate bubble and unemployment reaching 4.3 million, nearly 19% of the working population, explain this result. Both saving banks (5.05%) and banks (5.01%) are affected but...