Moody’s slashes state-backed debt rating

LISBON: The state-backed debt issued by four Portuguese banks suffered a sharp downgrade yesterday by Moody's rating agency two days after it downgraded Portuguese national debt to junk status.

Moody's said it had slashed its rating of debt held by BES and Caixa Geral de Depositis three notches from Baa1 to Ba1, and knocked the debt of private banks Millennium BCP and Banif down four notches to Ba2.