Spain default-insurance costs hit another record ( 10YR_ESP ) (by William L. Watts)

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- The cost of insuring Spanish government debt against default continued to climb into record territory Monday, picking up where it left off at the end of last week. The spread on five-year Spanish credit-default swaps, or CDS, widened to 523 basis points from 499 basis points on Friday, according to data provider Markit. That means it would cost $523,000 annually to insure $10 million of Spanish debt against default for five years, up from $499,000 on Friday. The spread had pressed above 500 basis points for the first time in Friday's session. The Italian CDS spread widened 16 basis points to 444. Spain's spread is 44 basis points wider than Italy's, the biggest differential since August 2011, according to Markit. Spain's 10-year bond yield (es:10yr_esp) on Monday pushed above the 6% level for the first time since Dec. 1. Spain is scheduled to auction government debt on Tuesday and Thursday amid ongoing worries over the country's growth prospects and ability to meet deficit targets.