World

U.S. markets may not see lasting impact from Fitch downgrade

Published

1 year ago

August 2, 2023

U.S. markets may not see lasting impact from Fitch downgrade

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., July 26, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

Aug 2 (Reuters) – Most major brokerages do not expect a sustained drag on U.S. financial markets following Fitch’s move to strip the country of its top credit rating, noting that the economy is stronger now than in 2011 when S&P Global downgraded U.S. sovereign debt.

Early moves in U.S. financial markets on Wednesday indicated some aversion to riskier assets as investors assessed the impact of the surprise downgrade.

Stock index futures fell, with Nasdaq futures down 0.7%, while Treasury yields slid by 3 basis points. The dollar climbed 0.2%, after slipping broadly in the wake of the downgrade.

Fitch Ratings on Tuesday cut its rating on U.S. long-term foreign-currency debt by one notch to ‘AA+’, citing fiscal deterioration over the next three years and repeated debt ceiling negotiations that threaten the government’s ability to pay its bills.

“Investors have lived through the S&P downgrade in 2011 and remember coming away unscathed. Another might be that people have gotten used to an elevated level of deficit spending,” said Steven Zeng, strategist at Deutsche Bank.

“We see the market impact from the downgrade news as ultimately limited, and Friday’s jobs report could trump the downgrade news as monetary policy is still the dominant driver for yields.”

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield declined about 3.6 basis points (bps) to 4.0109% immediately after Fitch’s decision, indicating investors’ preference for safer assets.

“The Treasury market was highly volatile in the wake of S&P’s downgrade in 2011, but the underpinnings of the U.S. economy were very different then… given the resilience of the U.S. economy and the tightness of labor markets,” said J.P.Morgan rate strategist Jay Barry.

Data released last week showed the U.S. economy grew faster than expected in the second quarter as a resilient labor market supported consumer spending, with markets now pricing in a soft-landing scenario for the economy despite rapid interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.

J.P.Morgan also noted that the spending cuts that ended the debt ceiling crisis of 2011 reduced federal spending by 0.7% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the following year, while the deal signed into law earlier this year is expected to lower federal spending by less than 0.2% of GDP next year.

Markets took comfort when Fitch did not adjust U.S. “country ceiling”, which it affirmed at AAA, showing strength in the ability of the corporate sector to convert local currency into a foreign currency for debt repayments.

“If Fitch had also lowered the country ceiling, it could have had negative implications for other AAA-rated securities issued by U.S. entities,” said Goldman Sachs economists led by Jan Hatzius.

Moody’s still holds a ‘Aaa’ rating on U.S. government debt. In a review in July, it cited economic strength, “extraordinary” funding capacity, and “central roles of the U.S. dollar and the U.S. Treasury bond market in the global financial system.”

Reporting by Susan Mathew in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Related Topics:aaa AMERS BISV BISV08 BLR CDM CEN CMPNY CMSS CMSS08 DBT ECO ECON EUROP Featured FIN FINS FINS08 FRX GB GVD IGD INDS INDS08 INT INVBIS INVI08 INVM INVMAN INVS08 ISER ISER08 MCE NAMER PRIS PRIVT RAGENS RCH TOPNWS us WEU

Click to comment

World

Italian state railways plans 1.3 bln euro investment in solar plant

Published

25 minutes ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Italian state railways plans 1.3 bln euro investment in solar plant

Italian state railways Ferrovie dello Stato plans to invest 1.3 billion euros ($1.36 billion) in a photovoltaic plant with an initial 1 gigawatt (GW) capacity that would cover 19% of its energy needs by 2029, the CEO said in a newspaper interview.

World

Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more

Published

1 hour ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more

Christmas, Navidad in Puerto Rico, extends far beyond Dec. 25.

The island proudly proclaims itself as having the “longest holiday season in the world,” according to the website Discover Puerto Rico.

On average, the holiday festivities in Puerto Rico last about 45 days, per the source, commencing right after Thanksgiving, and stretching all the way through mid-January.

The Christmas season in Puerto Rico typically lasts around 45 days. (iStock)

HOW TO SAY ‘MERRY CHRISTMAS’ IN 10 LANGUAGES TO FRIENDS AROUND THE WORLD

The holiday season in Puerto Rico is full of rich traditions beloved by families.

One tradition those who visit Puerto Rico will immediately notice during the holiday season is decorations.

In Puerto Rico, decorations are typically put up by Thanksgiving, and kept up until the season concludes in mid-January, with opportune picture moments at every corner.

Parrandas, Christmas caroling, is a holiday staple.

17 SECRET TRAVEL TIPS FOR FALL AND WINTER THAT AREN’T SO SECRET AFTER ALL

Carolers choose houses of family and friends to visit, typically starting around 10 p.m., performing aguinaldos (traditional Christmas songs), with not only their voices, but often with instruments as well, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

The group you begin caroling with is likely not the same group you end with.

In Puerto Rico, when carolers visit a house, they’ll often stop inside for conversation, food and drink before moving to the next residence.

Coquito is a popular beverage enjoyed during the holiday season in Puerto Rico. Coconut, vanilla and rum are among the ingredients. (Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

Usually, the residences of the house visited will join the group for the next house, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

CHRISTMAS TREES IN GERMANY WERE DECORATED WITH APPLES INSTEAD OF ORNAMENTS IN THE 1600S FOR ‘ADAM AND EVE DAY’

A night of serenading loved ones can last quite a while, often stretching into the early morning hours of the following day, according to the source.

The biggest day of the holiday season in Puerto Rico actually isn’t Christmas, but instead, the night before.

In Puerto Rico, Dec. 24 is Nochebuena. On that day, loved ones gather for the exchange of gifts, caroling and a large feast.

Many families will also attend a midnight Mass on the day, known as Misa de Gallo.

FLIGHT ATTENDANTS REVEAL THE SURPRISING DAY TO TRAVEL AHEAD OF THE CHRISTMAS RUSH

After Christmas passes, the festivities go on in Puerto Rico.

Another big event in the holiday lineup is Three Kings Day on Jan. 6, a holiday that “commemorates the visit that the Three Wise Men paid to Jesus after his birth,” according to Discover Puerto Rico.

On the eve of the day, children fill up a shoebox with grass to be left for camels to munch on while the Three Kings leave behind gifts for them, according to PuertoRico.com.

For a particularly festive Three Kings Day, Juana Díaz is the place to go, as it hosts the largest celebration in Puerto Rico for the holiday. In Juana Díaz, there is an annual festival and parade in honor of Three Kings Day that brings together over 25,000 people every year, according to Discover Puerto Rico.

Gifts are primarily exchanged between loved ones on Christmas Eve in Puerto Rico. (iStock)

Then, eight days later is Octavitas, a post-holiday celebration where families get together and celebrate one last time for the season.

The end of the holiday season is marked with the San Sebastián Street Festival.

This festival, spanning over multiple days, takes place in Old San Juan, and is filled with live music, dancing, shopping and parades.

Ashlyn Messier is a writer for Fox News Digital.

World

Small plane crashes into Brazil town popular with tourists, killing 10

Published

2 hours ago

December 22, 2024

Press Room

Small plane crashes into Brazil town popular with tourists, killing 10

Twin-engine plane crashed in largely residential neighborhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff, authorities say.

A small plane has crashed into a tourist hotspot in southern Brazil, killing all 10 people on board and injuring more than a dozen people on the ground, officials have said.

The twin-engine Piper PA-42-1000 hit the chimney of a home and the second floor of a different house before crashing into a shop in a largely residential neighbourhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff from Canela, Brazil’s Civil Defense agency said on Sunday.

Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite told a news conference that the aircraft’s owner and pilot, Luiz Claudio Galeazzi, was killed along with nine members of his family.

Leite said that 17 people on the ground were injured, 12 of whom were still receiving treatment in hospital.

Galeazzi’s company, Galeazzi & Associados, confirmed that its CEO and Galeazzi’s wife and three daughters had died in the crash.

“Luiz Galeazzi will be forever remembered for his dedication to his family and for his remarkable career as a leader of Galeazzi & Associados,” the company said in a post on LinkedIn.

“In this moment of immense pain, Galeazzi & Associados is deeply grateful for the expressions of solidarity and affection received from friends, colleagues and the community. We also sympathize with all those affected by the accident in the region.”

Gramado, located in the Serra Gaucha mountains, is a popular destination for vacationers, especially during the Christmas season.

The crash comes a little more than a year after Brazil suffered its worst air disaster in nearly two decades when a twin-engine plane crashed in the southeastern city of Vinhedo, killing all 62 people on board.