Fitch downgrades 8 of biggest banks

France: International credit rating agency Fitch Ratings has downgraded the credit ratings for eight of the world's biggest banks based in Europe and the United States, citing the ‘increased challenges’ they were facing in the financial markets.

The Paris-based agency said in a statement in New York on Thursday that it had lowered the ratings for Wall Street powerhouses Bank of America Corp. and the Goldman Sachs Group Inc. as well as the other US bank of Morgan Stanley, the Associated Press reported.

The European banks stuck by Fitch were Barclays PLC, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse AG, Deutsche Bank AG, and Societe Generale.

The market challenges the banks face are the result of both negative economic developments as well as numerous regulatory changes, Fitch said.

Last month, the US-based Standard & Poor's rating agency also downgraded Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Barclays, HSBC, and some financial firms in Germany and France.

Moody's, another such mainstream US-based agency, also recently issued several downgrades for some banks and other international financial firms.

Press TV