* Revenue just below expectations

* Latam growth helps offset weakness elsewhere

* Weak Spanish business improves in Q3

* Shares slip 0.5 percent to 18.88 euros at 0901 GMT

(Releads with details, analysts)

By Elisabeth O'Leary

MADRID, Nov 12 (Reuters) - Strength in emerging Latin America and cost-cutting helped Telefonica (TEF.MC: Quote, Profile, Research) present flat nine-month profit on Thursday, and the telecoms group said its recession-hit Spanish business was shrinking more slowly.

Spain, which still provides one third of Europe's largest telecom's revenues, registered an 8 percent decline in mobile revenues in the third quarter alone, 1 percentage point lower than in the previous quarter.