Edited by: Muhammad Abdul-Wakeel
Mubasher: Moody's has completed its periodic review of issuers including the governments of Iraq, Lebanon, and Jordan, according to reports released on Friday.
The credit rating of Iraq remained at Caa1, with a ‘moderate (-)’ economic strength.
Moody’s views on the Iraqi economy reflected the country’s strong growth potential, which is backed by the country's rich resources.
The global rating agency set the issuer rating of Lebanon at Caa1, with ‘low (+)’ economic strength.
Such downgraded economic strength stemmed from the country’s weak governance framework and ineffective fiscal policy.
“[Lebanon’s] very low fiscal strength reflecting high and rising debt burden amid declining affordability; and its high susceptibility to event risk driven by political risk amid the country's fragile sectarian balance and exposure to regional tensions,” Moody’s remarked.
Furthermore, the credit rating of Jordan stood at B1, with a ‘moderate (-)’ economic strength, which reflects the balance of the Arab nation’s “very weak growth performance”.
However, Moody's stressed that Jordan enjoyed a “relatively strong” growth potential backed by the county’s diversified economy and high gross domestic product (GDP) level.
