France's latest debt warning describes a country where governance is breaking down — and even doing too little, too late is barely possible

(Credit: Kiran RIDLEY / AFP via Getty Images)

France avoided a credit downgrade from Moody’s, but the ratings agency painted a bleak picture of the eurozone’s second-largest economy that highlighted the risks from its intractable politics.

In an announcement late Friday, Moody’s kept France at Aa3—two grades below the U.S. and three below Germany—with a negative outlook, while ratings from peers Fitch and S&P Global are one notch lower.