US credit downgrade - Incandescent light bulb ban - West Africa regional tensions

Source: Bloomberg

1. Summary
   Late Tuesday Fitch Ratings downgraded its assessment of the United States government's creditworthiness, becoming the second of three major credit-rating firms to do so. Standard and Poor's has maintained an AA+ rating for the US since 2011, when it downgraded the US from AAA.
   
   The firm said its decision reflects an "expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years," as well as an "erosion of governance." The latter remark is widely seen as a reference to the recent political deadlock over raising the debt ceiling that nearly resulted in a default. Fitch noted it expects the government's debt to hit 118% of the US GDP in 2025, which is 2.5 times higher than the norm for AAA countries.
   
   Economists told the Associated Press the downgrade will have little immediate impact. Goldman Sachs economist Alec Phillips said credit ratings matter more for smaller countries and described US Treasury securities as being in a class of their own. “Nobody’s holding Treasuries because of the ratings,” Phillips said.

   Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
   The US government’s debt has been downgraded. Here’s what to know.
   Associated Press (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 79% • 5 min read
   

1. Different political viewpoint
   US credit rating downgrade is a sign of government dysfunction.
   Reason (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 79% • 3 min read

1. Selected long-read
   Ignore the US downgrade, here’s a much bigger risk for investors.
   Australian Financial Review (Center) • Factual Grade 69% • 5 min read

1. Recent poll
   Is House Speaker McCarthy right to tie federal spending cuts to raising the debt limit?
   549 votes • 89 comments

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