On May 6, 2008, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services affirmed its 'AAA/Stable/A-1+' senior debt rating on Fannie Mae and placed its 'AA-' risk to the government, preferred stock, and subordinated debt ratings on Fannie Mae on CreditWatch Negative. The CreditWatch Negative placement is due to Fannie Mae's continued weak core earnings and elevated mortgage credit losses. Today Fannie Mae posted an after-tax quarterly loss of $2.2 billion, its third consecutive quarterly loss. At the same time Fannie Mae announced plans to raise $6 billion in new capital, including common equity, and to cut the common dividend beginning with the third quarter to $0.25 per share, providing $390 million of additional capital support annually. The key reasons behind the first-quarter loss
