Brexit could lead to downgrades for other EU countries: Fitch

London

A BRITISH exit from the European Union could hurt the credit ratings of other EU countries with close trade or financial ties to Britain, including Germany, France, Spain, Ireland and the Netherlands, Fitch said on Monday.

The ratings agency has already said that it will review Britain's rating, currently "AA+" with a stable outlook, if the "out" campaign wins June 23's referendum - something that it stressed was not its "base case" scenario.

If it does happen though, it would create widespread uncertainty for the whole European bloc as governments and businesse…