MADRID — With Spain struggling to escape the European debt crisis and facing the threat of another recession, cash-strapped companies in the country are increasingly looking abroad for new business and financing — and losing their Spanish accent in the process.

While it is hardly a corporate exodus, the fear that the trickle will become a flood if the Spanish economy worsens is generating concern at a time when the government in Madrid is struggling to find additional revenue to close a gaping budget deficit.

Highlighting concerns about Spain on Thursday, Standard & Poor’s downgraded the country’s long-term debt rating, to AA- from AA, because of its poor growth prospects and troubled banks.

Telefónica, the former public telephone monopoly, set off alarms in September when it said that it would create a new digital unit in London for its most promising mobile and online businesses.