Recognize that ratings agencies are subject to political and other pressures. Their performance in the sub-prime debt crisis was criminal.

With that in mind, imagine the political pressure to keep sovereign ratings overstated. Nevertheless, this chart looks dismal in spite of this pressure:

A slightly larger version of this chart can be found at Zerohedge.

It should also be pointed out that states and municipalities in the US are heading in the same direction. The following chart show Muni bankruptcy filings soaring:

H/T to Zerohedge for this chart and this observation:

The decisions to seek bankruptcy “provide some indication that willingness to pay debt obligations may be eroding in the U.S. municipal market,” according to the Moody’s report …