MADRID – The Spanish government has prepared measures to help the country's press industry, where thousands have been laid off due to the economic crisis, a journalists' association said Tuesday.

The measures, which were not revealed, may involve direct aid to the sector as well as expanded access to state credit, the Federation of Journalist Associations in Spain (FAPE) said.

They were being studied at a meeting on Monday by the Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la Vega and the FAPE, which last week called for urgent measures to help the industry.

The association has said that since June 2008, 2,221 out of a total of 30,000 Spanish journalists have lost their jobs amid a sharp drop in advertising revenues due to the economic crisis.

It said Tuesday that around 350 more journalists could be out of work soon.

Some publications, such as the free daily Metro, have been forced to close down while others, such as ABC and El Periodico, have announced staff reduction plans.

In March, the country's top-selling newspaper, El Pais, announced a rise of 9.0 percent in the price of its Monday to Saturday editions to EUR 1.20.

AFP / Expatica