Moody's

Credit rating agency Moody's has warned on the status of France's AAA-rating after the yield on its bonds spiked last week.

The European Commission (EC) has proposed a crackdown on ratings agencies such as Standard & Poor's (S&P) and Moody's which would see them held accountable for mistakes and ensure they followed stricter rules.

Credit ratings agency Moody's has given the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) 10-year €3bn benchmark bond an Aaa rating.

Credit rating agency Moody's may downgrade Lloyds Banking Group because of the sick leave taken by chief executive Antonio Horta-Osório, which could hold back the bank's restructuring plans.

Credit agency Moody's has cut the rating of Spanish government bonds by two notches, echoing Standard & Poor's decision two days ago.

Rating agency Moody's has issued a warning on France's AAA-credit rating, saying it may downgrade its outlook for the country based on its overstretched budget.

Italian and Spanish government debt have both been downgraded by the Fitch credit rating agency.

Bank shares have deepened losses after the downgrade of 12 UK financial institutions by Moody's, pushing the FTSE 100 into negative territory.

Italy has had its sovereign debt rating cut by ratings agency Standard & Poor's as the European debt crisis continues to rumble on.

Ratings agency Moody's has extended its review of Italy's Aa2 credit rating by a further 30 days as it assesses the country's financial position.