US credit rate downgraded amid debt rise

Experts point to unsustainable growth model as they warn of economic strains

Moody's recent downgrade of the United States' sovereign credit rating from the top-notch Aaa to Aa1 — the first time in more than 100 years — over concerns about the nation's growing debt underscores an unsustainable debt-driven growth model, experts said, as they warned of economic pressure and the risk of a potential debt crisis.

The sovereign credit rating is a measure of a government's ability to repay its debts.

Moody's cited "the increase over more than a decade in government debt and interest payment ratios to levels that are significantly higher than similarly rated sovereigns", as the reason behind the downgrade in a statement.