Moody's warns US, Europe countries on rising costs

NEW YORK: Moody's is warning the U.S., France, Germany and the United Kingdom that they need to better control the rising costs of pensions and health care subsidies.

In a report issued Thursday, Moody's Investors Service reiterated its stance that it could downgrade its outlook of U.S. debt, the first step toward downgrading the debt from Moody's highest rating of Aaa, which the United States has held since 1917. But the rating agency's top analyst for U.S. debt emphasized that no downgrade in the debt is looming.