Moody's leaves France's AAA rating and stable outlook intact

Paris (dpa) - Moody‘s ratings agency on Monday said it was maintaining its AAA credit rating with a stable outlook on France for now, France Info radio reported.

Moody‘s had warned in October it might change the outlook on France from stable to "negative."

In an opinion Monday the agency said it was giving itself more time to assess France‘s progress on implementing reforms.

The announcement was greeted with relief in France, three days after the country lost its AAA rating from rival agency Standard & Poor‘s.

S&P downgraded France from AAA to AA+ with a negative outlook, citing "deepening political, financial and monetary problems within the eurozone with which France is closely integrated."

Fitch, the third of the three big ratings agencies, which like Moody‘s rates France‘s debt AAA, changed its outlook on France in December to negative. dpa cfb ar Author: Clare Byrne