Italy's business confidence index fell this month following a tough Christmas season for retailers, the official data agency Istat said in a statement on Thursday.

The index was at 92.5 points compared to 94 points last month, Istat said, adding that the declines was due to concern among business owners on the forecasts for production and future orders.

Asian markets mostly fell on Thursday and the euro slipped as concerns over the Eurozone debt crisis refused to abate, ahead of an auction of long-term Italian debt later in the day.

With trading light due to the Christmas holidays, Asia also had little cue for direction from Wall Street and Europe despite Rome enjoying a successful sale of short-term bonds on Wednesday.

Spain's economy shrank in the final quarter of 2011, battered by financial market tensions and a deteriorating global economic outlook, the Bank of Spain said Thursday.

The grim report fed widespread fears that Spain has already slumped into a recession after the economy, dragged down by a 21.5-percent jobless rate, posted zero growth in the third quarter of 2011.

Asian markets mostly slipped on Wednesday as unease over the eurozone debt crisis overshadowed a strong rise in consumer confidence in the United States.

On the first full day of trade after Christmas eyes were on Italy, which will hold a debt auction later amid weakened confidence after lenders in Europe deposited a record amount with the central bank rather than lend to each other.

Eurozone banks deposited a record amount of overnight funds at the European Central Bank on Tuesday, official data showed Wednesday as banks remain extremely wary of lending to each other.

Banks put 452.03 billion euros ($590.6 billion) on deposit for 24 hours at the European Central Bank, beating the previous record of 411.8 billion euros set on Tuesday.

Oil was mixed in thin year-end Asian trade Wednesday as Iran warned it would lock down the crucial Strait of Hormuz if the West imposed sanctions on its oil exports, analysts said.

New York's main contract, light sweet crude for February delivery, gained two cents to $101.36 per barrel in the afternoon.

Brazil beamed with pride Tuesday on news that it has powered past Britain to become the world's sixth biggest economy but officials say it will take another 20 years before the country can match the Europeans' standard of living.

"From a psychological standpoint, this is a fantastic year-end victory," Ricardo Teixeira, an administration professor at the prestigious Getulio Vargas foundation in Rio, told Agence France Presse.

Saudi Arabia will need a breakeven crude oil price of $74 per barrel to generate the funds required to meet its widening expenditure next year, Jadwa Investment said on Tuesday.

The OPEC kingpin announced on Monday yet another expansionary budget with spending marked at 690 billion riyals ($184 billion), and revenues reaching 702 billion riyals.

The German economy is starting the new year in "downright robust" form, Economy Minister Philipp Roesler said in a newspaper interview Tuesday.

"Our economy is downright robust, even if the environment, both at an international and a European level, has become more difficult," Roesler told the business daily Handelsblatt.

OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia on Monday posted a budget surplus of 306 billion riyals (81.6 billion) for 2011, as revenues turned out to be double the forecast, the finance ministry said.

The world's largest crude oil exporter had expected a deficit of 40 billion riyals ($10.7 billion), or 7.4 percent, with planned expenditure of 580 billion riyals ($154.7 billion).