Moody's

There’s a new kid on the block -- but will this agency be able to give the big boys a run for their money?

French bonds fell today in the wake of Moody's downgrading the nation's credit rating. So is the second largest economy in Europe shrugging its collective shoulders? Non!

Europe's second largest economy, France, has just had its AAA credit rating downgraded by the rating agency Moody's.

Moody's Investors Service has lowered the outlook for the credit ratings of three of Europe's strongest economies: Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Germany. It's part of a busy day in Europe that has investors on-edge -- markets there are barely moving.

In Europe today, the focus has shifted from Spain to Italy, in the ongoing EU debt crisis. Moody's credit rating agency has downgraded Italian debt to just two levels above junk status.

The credit rating agency Moody's slashed the ratings of 15 of the world's biggest financial institutions, including Citigroup and Bank of America here in the U.S. and Barclays and Credit Suisse in Europe.

Moody's has downgraded the credit ratings of 15 banks in Europe and North America -- that continues to rattle markets in Asia and Europe today so far.