S&P: France's AAA-rating is 'stable'

France's AAA credit rating is "stable" said ratings agency Standard & Poor's, a week after rumours hit the market the country is facing a downgrade.

S&P's head of France, Carol Sirou, spoke out on RTL radio after it was suggested last week the nation's creditworthiness was not as strong as previously thought, the BBC reports. "The rating for France is a stable AAA and that has been the case since 1975," Sirou said. "We are confident on that rating." S&P downgraded US debt from AAA to AA+ for the first time in its history over concerns about its fiscal consolidation plan. The plan, agreed by Congress and the administration at the beginning of August, fell short of what "would be necessary to stabilise the government's medium-term d...