France loses AAA credit rating

PARIS — France lost its top-tier credit rating Friday, the finance minister announced, dealing a strong blow to the country’s effort to redress its finances and to President Nicolas Sarkozy’s campaign to get reelected.

The rating cut by Standard & Poor’s, expected to be announced later Friday in New York, moved France from AAA to AA+. It was a slight drop, but one likely to prove significant as the French government turns to financial markets to borrow money on top of an already crushing debt.

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