Access Investments-European Union- ROMANIA

Standard & Poor's, erroneously dispatched a message on Thursday that France's credit rating had been downgraded. S&P can't take all the blame (though the "technical error" was appalling). The deeper reasons include: a) French banks are carrying more Italian debt than anybody else – about €300bn worth. That's on top of the writedowns they are currently taking on their large Greek exposures. b) Within the worsening outlook for eurozone growth published by the European commission on Thursday, France came off badly. Don't expect growth of 2% next year: the new figure is just 0.6%. c) A credit rating change now seems more likely, even if S&P has fixed its computer. In the tail-wags-dog world of ratings agencies, higher yields tend to make downgrades more likely. d ) There is the worry that any attempt at bailing out Italy would put intense pressure on France. The European financial stability facility is backed by guarantees from member states. Italy obviously couldn't give guarantees on loans to itself, so a greater burden would fall on others. Alternatively, any officially sanctioned "haircut" for holders of Italian debt would rebound on French banks.