A new Moody's report said "the United States'....>

US: A new Moody's report said "the United States' (Aaa stable) debt

affordability is set to weaken due to a range of factors, including rising

entitlement spending, increasing debt-servicing costs and potential tax reform."

(Report however did not announce a credit rtg action.)

- It said "proportions of govt revenue and GDP dedicated to general govt's

interest payments are main indicators that determine debt affordability and

overall fiscal strength in reserve currency sovereigns like the US. The US

stands out for having the least affordable debt burden among Aaa-rated

sovereigns and G7 countries based on Moody's projections" of 2017

interest-to-revenue ratio, "due to a combination of generally higher debt

levels, higher average nominal cost of government debt and lower general

government revenues as a share of GDP."

- Co-author Sarah Carlson said "metrics are set to further erode amid rising

interest costs from the normalization in Tsy yields, which worsen affordability

due to the maturity profile and level of government debt." She said "medium-term

interest rates" are "expected to nearly double over the next 5 years."