Reuters
September 19, 2008
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Pressure is building on the pristine “AAA” rating of the United States after a federal bailout of American International Group Inc, the chairman of Standard & Poor’s sovereign ratings committee said on Wednesday.
The $85 billion bailout of AIG on Tuesday by the U.S. Federal Reserve “has weakened the fiscal profile of the United States,” S&P’s John Chambers told Reuters in an interview.
“Lack of a pro-active stance could have resulted in further financial stress and put pressure on the U.S. triple-A rating,” Chambers said. “There’s no God-given gift of a ‘AAA’ rating, and the U.S. has to earn it like everyone else.”
The cost of insuring 10-year U.S. Treasury debt against default rose on Wednesday to a record high, a day after the government rescued insurer AIG with an $85 billion loan. At one time, AIG was the world’s largest insurer, ranked by market value. At midday on Wednesday, AIG’s stock was down 33 percent at $2.50 on the New York Stock Exchange.
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