STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
NPR's business news starts with S&P saying: Sorry about that.
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INSKEEP: The ratings agency Standard and Poor's has made a lot of headlines for downgrading sovereign debt. Markets went into a tailspin last summer when S&P lowered the U.S. credit rating. That decision also prompted fierce criticism of S&P itself. Investors were rattled again when Standard and Poor's sent out an alert yesterday downgrading the debt of France. Turned out to be a false alarm, but it took almost two hours for S&P to clarify that. S&P says it's investigating the mistake, and so, as you might imagine, are the French. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.