SA descends deeper into junk territory after two downgrades

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South Africa Headlines News

South Africa fell deeper into junk territory after Moody’s Investors Service joined Fitch Ratings in lowering the country’s credit ratings on Friday.

Moody’s cut the nation’s foreign- and local-currency ratings to Ba2, two levels below investment grade, from Ba1. The outlook remains negative. Fitch cut the nation’s foreign- and local-currency ratings to BB-, three levels below investment grade, from BB, also with a negative outlook.

“The key driver behind the rating downgrade to Ba2 is the further expected weakening in South Africa’s fiscal strength over the medium term,” Moody’s said in a statement. Fitch said in a separate release that “the pandemic has severely hit South Africa’s economic growth performance, and GDP is expected to remain below 2019 levels even in 2022.

“A recovery is on the way as the lockdown was gradually eased during the third quarter and we expect GDP will contract by 7.3% in 2020,” Fitch said. South Africa’s government debt affordability, measured as the portion of revenue needed to cover interest payments, will deteriorate to 25% in the medium term, according to Moody’s.

S&P on Friday kept its assessment of South Africa’s foreign-currency debt three levels below investment grade, with a stable outlook.

 

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mmmm.....racist policies and threats of expropriation without compensation starting to weigh heavily!!! It's only down hill from here.....actually its being going down hill for a while!!! Look to your neighbours and wave - you'll join them soon!

Shit! In every sense of the word 😐

Sad indeed!

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