According to a report published by CNBC and cited by Reuters and Agerpres, an analyst at Fitch Ratings warned that US banks, including JPMorgan Chase, could be downgraded if the financial rating agency further downgrades its assessment of the banking industry’s operating environment.

Fitch downgraded the US banking industry’s “operating environment” to “AA-minus” from “AA” in June, citing pressure on the country’s credit rating, gaps in the regulatory framework and uncertainty about the future trajectory of interest rate hikes.

Another one-notch downgrade from AA-minus to A-plus would force Fitch to review all ratings assigned to more than 70 U.S. banks, CNBC analyst Chris Wolfe said.

This new warning from Fitch comes after lenders were hit this month by Moody’s decision to downgrade the ratings of 10 mid-sized US banks and warned that it could downgrade the ratings of other financial institutions.

Concerns are growing about the US economy

On August 1 and 2, stock markets around the world recorded significant declines following Fitch’s decision to remove the United States from the category of states enjoying the best country rating (“AAA”), with investors preferring to refocus on safe assets.

On the first day of this month, the financial rating agency downgraded the US country’s rating by one notch from “AAA” to “AA plus”, citing governance erosion linked to repeated crises caused by negotiations to raise the debt ceiling.

The announcement sent the dollar down about 0.30% against the euro overnight, after which the US currency recovered slightly.

According to economists, this downgrade of the US rating is not a sign of weakness in US GDP growth. The US economy, and especially the labor market, remains stable despite repeated interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve System (Fed) for more than a year to combat high inflation.