S&P says France will maintain top rating

PARIS: Standard & Poor's is confident France will maintain its top AAA credit rating despite rumours of a possible downgrade, the agency's European chief said Thursday.

"The rating for France is a stable AAA and that has been the case since 1975", S&P Europe chief Carole Sirou told RTL radio. "We are confident on that rating," she added, just days after the agency downgraded the US credit rating from AAA to AA+.

She said she had no comment to make on rumors of a possible French downgrade linked to the lingering eurozone crisis which has triggered major market turbulence.

In response to the French downgrade fears, Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have both issued statements denying any such move was under consideration.

Worries over French financial health mounted last week when bank shares plunged amid fears of their high exposure to Greek debt but a rebound later alleviated concern.

S&P downgraded the United Stats' long-term credit rating on August 5 amid concern over the country's finances and the failure of US lawmakers to agree on a deal to reduce the ballooning US debt by some $4 trillion over 10 years.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011