Eurozone to slip into recession this year: S&P's Chambers

Higher collateral and cash buffers could help the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) retain its triple 'A' rating, says John Chambers, head of sovereign ratings, S&P, even as nine Eurozone member nations suffered ratings downgrades over the weekend. EFSF is a special purpose vehicle financed by members of the eurozone, and was set up in May 2010 to combat the sovereign debt crisis that had just begun to surface then.

Speculation about the possibility of a downgrade of EFSF has arisen because of the ratings downgrades of some of the member nations that are guarantors to the EFSF. The fund is right now on credit watch, which implies a 50% possibility of a downgrade. The ESF