Moody's downgrades top French banksSeptember 14, 2011 - 11:40 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Moody's ratings agency said Wednesday, September 14, it had downgraded by one notch top French banks Societe Generale and Credit Agricole while leaving BNP Paribas on negative watch. Credit Agricole's rating slid from Aa1 to Aa2 while Societe Generale was cut from Aa2 to Aa3. Shares in all three banks have plummeted in recent weeks on exposure to Greek sovereign debt and turbulence caused by the eurozone debt crisis. Although BNP Paribas held on to its rating, the biggest French bank was kept on negative watch for possible downgrade later. Moody's said the Credit Agricole downgrade was directly related to the bank's exposure to Greece. For Societe Generale, the move was linked to a reevaluation of the amount of French state aid that would be made available to the lender in the event of a crisis. Moody's warned in June that it was looking at French banks with a view to possible downgrade because of their exposure to the Greek financial crisis. Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Lemkin Institute petition seeks release of Armenians in Azerbaijan The Lemkin Institute is deeply concerned about the continued illegal detention of political prisoners from Karabakh in Azerbaijan. Armenian Catholicos calls for national unity against threats Karekin II issued a message on Republic Day marking the anniversary of the First Armenian Republic. Pashinyan: Armenia’s desired goal is “on the horizon” Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said that Armenia is moving forward “without interruption”. Opposition leader, supporters spend night at Sardarapat memorial Police made nearly 300 arrests the day before as Galstanyan and his supporters continued to demonstrate in Yerevan. |