Moody’s casts doubt over France’s triple-A rating

DOUBT cast on France’s triple-A credit rating by Moody’s raised uncertainty over Europe’s hopes of drawing a line under its sovereign debt crisis, five days before a crucial EU summit.

The US ratings agency said it may slap a negative outlook on France’s AAA rating in the next three months if slower growth and the costs for helping bail out banks and other eurozone members stretch its budget too much.

“The deterioration in debt metrics and the potential for further contingent liabilities to emerge are exerting pressure on the stable outlook of the government’s AAA debt rating,” Moody’s said in its annual report on France.