Aspokesperson for Standard?& Poor’s said on Monday that there was a one-in-three likelihood that the rating agency “could lower” its long-term view on US debt within two years. Equities quickly dropped by more than 1.5 per cent but, importantly, the dollar did not weaken and US Treasury interest rates did not rise. The reason for this unusual pattern is simple: the markets think S&P’s move is important not because it signals something new about the economy, but because of its political impact in Washington.
評(píng)級(jí)機(jī)構(gòu)標(biāo)準(zhǔn)普爾(S&P's)發(fā)言人周一稱，該機(jī)構(gòu)在未來兩年內(nèi)“可能下調(diào)”其美國(guó)債務(wù)評(píng)級(jí)的幾率為三分之一。股市隨即應(yīng)聲跌逾1.5%，但重要的是，美元并未因此走軟，美國(guó)國(guó)債收益率也沒有上升。出現(xiàn)這種異常走勢(shì)的原因十分簡(jiǎn)單：市場(chǎng)之所以認(rèn)為標(biāo)普此舉頗為重要，并非因?yàn)樗砻髁四承┙?jīng)濟(jì)新動(dòng)向，而是由于它在華盛頓可能造成的政治影響。