Friday provided the markets with two reminders that the euro crisis hasn’t gone away. The decision by Standard & Poor’s to downgrade nine members of the euro zone, including France being stripped of its Triple-A rating and Italy being downgraded to Triple-B, had been widely expected.
But the collapse of the negotiations between Greece and its private-sector bondholders over a voluntary write-down of its debt wasn’t anticipated. The International Institute of Finance, which is negotiating on behalf of bondholders, said it hadn’t been able to agree a deal.
via Agenda: Greek Situation Is Most Serious of Latest Euro Crisis – WSJ.com.