Sat May 17 03:40:37 UTC 2025: ## News Article: U.S. Credit Rating Downgraded by Moody’s Amid Rising Debt Concerns

**Washington, May 17, 2025 (The Hindu) -** In a significant blow to President Donald Trump’s economic agenda, Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the United States’ credit rating from Aaa to Aa1 on Friday, citing escalating government debt levels. This move places the U.S. on par with ratings from S&P and Fitch, who previously made similar downgrades.

The agency highlighted a concerning trend of increasing government debt and interest payment ratios, projecting federal deficits to reach nearly 9% of economic output by 2035. This increase is driven by factors like rising interest payments, entitlement spending, and comparatively low revenue generation. Moody’s estimates the federal debt burden will climb to approximately 134% of GDP by 2035.

The White House swiftly responded, with Communications Director Steven Cheung dismissing the Moody’s analysis and singling out chief economist Mark Zandi for criticism.

Republicans and Democrats alike have reacted to the downgrade. Republican Congressman French Hill, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, called it “a strong reminder that our nation’s fiscal house is not in order.” Ranking Democrat on the House Budget Committee, Brendan Boyle, warned that the downgrade is “a direct warning: our fiscal outlook is deteriorating.”

The Moody’s decision comes amidst a struggle in Congress to pass President Trump’s spending bill, which aims to revamp and renew his 2017 tax relief partially through cuts to Medicaid.

Despite the downgrade, Moody’s revised its outlook for the U.S. from negative to stable, acknowledging the nation’s economic strengths, including its size, resilience, dynamism, and the U.S. dollar’s role as the global reserve currency. The agency acknowledged that successive U.S. administrations and Congress have failed to agree on measures to reverse the trend of large annual fiscal deficits and growing interest costs.

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