S&P keeps US rating unchanged, outlook 'negative'

Standard & Poor's held its US sovereign rating steady at AA+ Friday but also kept its negative outlook on the country, citing the political deadlock over fixing the fiscal deficit. Ten months after delivering a historic rate cut to Washington, removing its top-level AAA rating, S&P said conditions had not changed significantly in the country's standing to merit another rating shift. It reiterated its August 2011 warning that if politicians do not come together to address the gaping fiscal hole and reduce debt over the medium term, the United States could face another downgrade. "The negative outlook reflects our opinion that US sovereign credit risks, primarily political and fiscal, could build to the point of leading us to lower our 'AA+' long-term rating by 2014."