Redoubling bailout efforts in Europe

European leaders promised over the weekend to speed up plans to strengthen spending rules and get a permanent bailout fund up and running as soon as possible.

On Friday, S&P cut the credit ratings of several euro zone countries.

In a conference call with reporters and analysts after downgrading nine of the euro zone's 17 countries, Standard & Poor's said it saw continued risks from the debt crisis that has overshadowed Europe for the past two years. The ratings agency said the single currency area was heading toward recession.

It also warned that France, which suffered a downgrade to AA+ from the top-notch AAA, was at risk of further cuts if a recession further inflates its debt and budget deficit.

In Germany -- whose top AAA rating survived unscathed -- Chancellor Angela Merkel said the downgrades underlined why a so-called 'fiscal compact' must be signed by member states quickly, and the next bailout mechanism, known as the ESM, should be funded soon.

The ratings decision hit some countries harder than others, with France, Austria, Malta, Slovakia and Slovenia suffering single-notch downgrades, but Italy, Portugal, Spain and Cyprus falling two notches. Portugal's debt is now rated "junk," or below investment grade.