Germany, Netherlands, Luxembourg maintain triple-A ratings

Date: Tuesday 29 May 2012

Japanese ratings agency Rating and Investment Information (R and I) has decided to reiterate its ‘triple-A’ rating for Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg and maintain their stable outlooks despite the escalating tensions over Greece.

“Growing murkiness about Greece's future is strongly weighing on the creditworthiness of Portugal and Ireland, which are receiving financial assistance from the European Union (EU) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), as well as Italy and Spain, which face economic and fiscal structural issues,” the agency noted. In fact, this situation led R&I to cut Spain’s rating today to “A” with a negative outlook.

Nonetheless, the agency points out that Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg maintain the ‘AAA’ rating because they are in an altogether different situation.

“The three countries' solid economic fundamentals, stable financial systems, and relatively sound fiscal conditions are strong positives,” these analysts explained.

However, R&I does warn that “if a Greek exit from the Eurozone becomes more likely (…), even the creditworthiness of AAA countries could be pressured downward, depending on the degree of unease.”

JM

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