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Moody's Ratings is set to downgrade the world's largest banks at 4 p.m., according to new reports out of CNBC. The network says sources tell it Citi, J.P. Morgan Chase, and Goldman Sachs will be hit with two notch downgrades. Bank of America is expected to be cut one notch by Moody's. Morgan Stanley, which is also on the list of banks Moody's said it would take action against, is said to be downgraded as well. Nine European banks are expected to be included in the downgrade, which earlier reports noted would include Barclay's, UBS, HSBC, Lloyd's, and RBS.

NEW YORK, April 6 (Reuters) - Egan-Jones Ratings downgraded the credit level of the United States as Washington has struggled to reduce the federal debt burden, which is projected to surpass the size of the country's economy. The independent rating firm, which issued the downgrade late Thursday, said its senior debt rating on the United States is now AA, its third highest rating, down one notch from AA-plus. It also maintained a negative watch on the world's biggest economy as the federal debt load could rise to $16.7 trillion at the end of 2012. U.S. gross domestic product, in the...

Moody's announced that it may soon downgrade the long-term credit ratings of 17 of the largest banks in the world. "Capital markets firms are confronting evolving challenges, such as more fragile funding conditions, wider credit spreads, increased regulatory burdens and more difficult operating conditions," wrote the credit ratings agency in a statement. "These difficulties, together with inherent vulnerabilities such as confidence-sensitivity, interconnectedness, and opacity of risk, have diminished the longer term profitability and growth prospects of these firms." Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and UBS could be downgraded by up to three notches. Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit Agricole, Deutsche Bank,...

You know there is a reason why Europe just came crawling with an advance handout looking for US assistance: Moody's jsut went apeshit on Europe. In other news, we wouldn't want to be the company that insured Moody's Milan offices.Full release:Moody's adjusts ratings of 9 European sovereigns to capture downside risksAs anticipated in November 2011, Moody's Investors Service has today adjusted the sovereign debt ratings of selected EU countries in order to reflect their susceptibility to the growing financial and macroeconomic risks emanating from the euro area crisis and how these risks exacerbate the affected countries' own specific challenges.Moody's...

Moody's actions can be summarised as follows: - Austria: outlook on Aaa rating changed to negative - France: outlook on Aaa rating changed to negative - Italy: downgraded to A3 from A2, negative outlook - Malta: downgraded to A3 from A2, negative outlook - Portugal: downgraded to Ba3 from Ba2, negative outlook - Slovakia: downgraded to A2 from A1, negative outlook - Slovenia: downgraded to A2 from A1, negative outlook - Spain: downgraded to A3 from A1, negative outlook - United Kingdom: outlook on Aaa rating changed to negative Please see the individual country specific statements below for more detailed...

Stocks accelerated their losses Friday, on track to logging their worst session this year, after stalled debt negotiations in Greece, some disappointing economic news and reports that S&P downgraded a handful of Italian banks. In the latest round of disappointment from the euro zone, ratings agency S&P downgraded 34 of 37 Italian banks, including banking giant UniCredit, citing worries over the banking industry and economic risks in the country. The move comes after the ratings agency's downgrade of Italy's sovereign rating in January to BBB+, along with downgrades of nine other euro zone countries. All three major averages are on...

<p>Will A be the new AA+? Perhaps, if the S&P follows through with its latest threat. Bloomberg reports that [Bloomberg material cannot be posted here] . . . .</p>

FITCH GOES ON RAMPAGE: CUTS SPAIN, ITALY, BELGIUM, CYPRUS, AND SLOVENIA Simone Foxman January 27,2012 Fitch just cut the long-term issuer ratings of 5 EU countries: Belgium: AA+ to AA Spain: AA- to A Italy: A+ to A- Cyprus: BBB to BBB- Slovenia: AA- to A It affirmed Ireland's BBB+ rating with a negative outlook. Borrowing costs have been sinking for these countries lately–particularly for Italy and Spain—after the European Central Bank announced liquidity support measures in early December that have lessened mounting worries about the health of the banking system. While Fitch says that it supports EU leaders actions...

France and Austria lost their triple-A credit ratings yesterday evening—an ill-starred Friday 13th January—as seven other eurozone countries were also downgraded by US-based credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P). The move was described by European leaders as “political” and “inconsistent”, and China claimed the move cast doubt on the credibility of credit ratings agencies. The two triple-A economies were nudged down one notch by S&P, to AA+, but retain top AAA rating from the other two main ratings agencies, Moody's and Fitch. Two notches were struck from the ratings of Italy (to BBB+), Spain (to A), Cyprus (to BB+)...

The Obama administration will be asking Congress to raise the debt limit in the coming days, White House press secretary Jay Carney said on Tuesday. "I'm confident it will be executed in a matter of days, not weeks," he told reporters. The notification by the administration — which had been scheduled for last month — was delayed because Congress has been holding only pro forma sessions.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- There's a good chance France and a few other euro area governments will have their credit ratings downgraded in the near future. That would mark another low point in Europe's long-running debt crisis, but it may not shock the markets. "The downgrades are likely to come sooner rather than later," said Ewen Cameron Watt, chief investment strategist for the BlackRock Investment Institute. "But we believe bond markets have largely factored them in for countries such as France, Italy and Spain." While the bond market may be prepared, the immediate response could be less sanguine in the...

FRANKFURT, Germany - Ratings agency Standard & Poors says it's putting the European Union on review for a possible downgrade of its triple-A credit rating. The move Wednesday follows up on a similar action taken Dec. 5 in regard to 15 of the 17 members of the euro because of the eurozone's debt crisis.

Ahead of a planned summit of European Union leaders, the credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s has put all 17 Euro nations on review for a credit downgrade, which means France and Germany could lose the pristine AAA ratings they presently enjoy, Bloomberg News is reporting. The euro area’s six AAA rated countries are among the nations to be placed on a negative outlook pending the result of a summit of European Union leaders on Dec. 9, the people said today on condition of anonymity because the decision has yet to be announced. The euro reversed its gains and U.S. Treasuries rose...

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Another trading day and another low for Bank of America's stock. Shares of Bank of America dropped more than 3% Tuesday, hitting a new 52-week low of $5.03 -- its lowest level since March 12, 2009. After the close of trading Tuesday, Bank of America was one of 37 financial institutions downgraded by S&P. Beyond the S&P downgrade, trading could become even more complicated in Bank of America's stock, if it falls below $5. Under that threshold, many broker-dealers will not allow investors to buy or short a stock on margin, according to a spokesperson for...

Following the failure of the supercommittee, the U.S. government’s AAA credit rating was placed on a “negative outlook” Monday by Fitch Ratings, indicating a more than 50 percent chance the country gets slapped with another downgrade in the next two years. “By postponing the difficult decisions on tax and spending until after forthcoming congressional and presidential elections, the scale and pace of required deficit reduction will consequently be greater,” Fitch said in a statement. “Conversely, failure to reach agreement in 2013 on a credible deficit reduction plan and a worsening of the economic and fiscal outlook would likely result in...

Economists are warning of dire consequences if US politicians fail to make progress this weekend in tense talks aimed at reducing America's massive deficit ahead of a Wednesday deadline. The bi-partisan congressional super-committee is charged with drawing up plans for a $1.2tn reduction in the nation's deficit by the middle of next week. Failure to do so will trigger an automatic "sequester" that will make cuts of that size to defence and social welfare programmes starting in 2013. But the two sides seem far from finding a solution after clashing over tax revenues.

The president who is well on his way toward borrowing more money than any other president — the first president to downgrade the nation’s credit — had a late-night conference call with European leaders to chew them out for not meeting his standards when it comes to managing a nation’s money. From the London Daily Mail: “Barack Obama has read the riot act to the leaders of several European countries — saying more dramatic action is needed to avert a eurozone meltdown. The U.S. President made telephone calls to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian President...

Monster Prediction From BofA: Another US Debt Downgrade Is Coming In Just A Few Weeks Joe Weisenthal | Oct. 22, 2011, 7:04 AM | 4,055 | 48 In an analyst note, Bofa/ML Ethan S. Harris drops a bit of a bombshell prediction: We expect a moderate slowdown in the beginning of next year, as two small policy shocks—another debt downgrade and fiscal tightening—hit the economy. The “not-so-super” Deficit Commission is very unlikely to come up with a credible deficit-reduction plan. The committee is more divided than the overall Congress. Since the fall-back plan is sharp cuts in discretionary spending, the...

S&P Downgrades Spain One Notch, Citing Economic Woes OCTOBER 13, 2011, 7:13 P.M. ET DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on Thursday downgraded Spain a notch, citing increasingly unpredictable financing conditions that could squeeze a private sector already pressured by lackluster economic growth. The ratings cut is the latest blow to a large European sovereign's credit status after S&P last month downgraded Italy a notch, citing many of the same problems afflicting euro-zone economies. S&P expects the Spanish economy will grow at about 1% in real terms next year, a drop from the 1.5% pace it forecast in...