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Moody's joins S&P, downgrades Puerto Rico credit rating to junk status

Associated Press
Published | Updated

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Moody's Investors Service has downgraded Puerto Rico's credit rating to junk status.

The announcement Friday by the credit rating agency comes just days after Standard & Poor's cut the U.S. territory's debt to junk as well.

Moody's says its decision was based in part of not seeing sufficient economic growth to help reverse negative financial trends.

A spokeswoman for Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla did not immediately return a message for comment.

Puerto Rico is struggling with $70 billion in public debt and is preparing to re-enter the bond market this month.

The island of 3.67 million people has entered its eighth year in recession and faces a 15.4 percent unemployment rate, the highest compared with any U.S. state.