S&P downgrades U.S. benchmark bond to AA+ over debt

Standard & Poor's announced that it had lowered the United States' long-term credit rating to AA-plus. The ratings agency cited political risks and a rising debt burden for its decision.

"The downgrade reflects our opinion that the fiscal consolidation plan that Congress and the Administration recently agreed to falls short of what, in our view, would be necessary to stabilize the government's medium-term debt dynamics," the agency said in a press release.

World reaction to the news included placing blame on U.S. debt policy for economic woes in other countries.