Debt

Full text: S&P downgrades the U.S. debt rating 

On Aug. 5, rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded its rating of the U.S. sovereign debt, the first such downgrade for the U.S. in modern history. Below is the full text of Standard & Poor’s press statement. We have lowered our long-term sovereign credit rating on the United States of America to ‘AA+’ from ‘AAA’ and affirmed the ‘A-1+’ short-term rating. We have also removed both the short- and long-term ratings from CreditWatch negative.