Fitch may cut U.S. to "restricted default" in August

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fitch Ratings on Wednesday warned it could downgrade the U.S. sovereign ratings to "restricted default" if the government fails to honor Treasury notes and some coupon payments on Treasury securities due on August 15.

The ratings would be raised again after the default is cured, but probably not to the current AAA level, Fitch said in a statement. It added, however, that it believes U.S. lawmakers will ultimately reach an agreement to raise the country's debt ceiling and avoid any default.

(Reporting by Walter Brandimarte and Daniel Bases; Editing by James Dalgleish)