Fitch: Interest Rate Risk Main Threat for Japanese Life Insurers
May 29, 2017 00:03 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Interest rate risk is likely to remain the primary threat for Japanese traditional life insurers, as a majority of the countrys life insurers will be unable to lengthen asset duration due to persistently low bond yields,...
Moody's downgrades China's rating to A1 from Aa3 and changes outlook to stable from negative
May 24, 2017 00:22 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Moodys Investors Service has today downgraded Chinas long-term local currency and foreign currency issuer ratings to A1 from Aa3 and changed the outlook to stable from negative. The downgrade reflects Moodys expectation...
Fitch: Saudi 1Q Deficit Narrows, Some Allowance Cuts Reversed
May 23, 2017 11:56 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Saudi Arabias sharply narrower first quarter deficit highlights the positive fiscal impact of higher oil prices. But the partial reversal of a cut in public sector allowances shows reforms are not yet well entrenched,...
May 23, 2017 11:20 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Poorly structured covenant-lite loans today make up a much larger proportion of the US leveraged loan market than they did before the credit crisis, and this does not bode well for investor recoveries during the next...
Fitch: Recovery in Belarus Bank Lending is Still Some Way Off
May 23, 2017 10:34 am UTC| Research & Analysis
A return to growth in Belarusian bank lending is still some way off, Fitch Ratings said at its annual conference on Belarus in Minsk today. We expect new lending (excluding exchange-rate effects) to be at best flat in...
Moody's: Low interest rates partly offset risks from UK consumers' high over-indebtedness levels
May 23, 2017 07:37 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Low interest rates mean that despite recent looser underwriting of unsecured debt, consumers in the United Kingdom (UK) will continue to be able to service their high debt levels in a base case scenario, according to...
May 23, 2017 05:39 am UTC| Research & Analysis
Namibias Baa3 rating with a negative outlook reflects the countrys solid medium-term growth prospects and institutional strength, set against credit challenges including its rising public debt and heightened external...
Johannesburg in a time of darkness: Ivan Vladislavić’s new memoir reminds us of the city’s fragility
Economist Chris Richardson on an ‘ugly’ inflation result and the coming budget
Biden administration tells employers to stop shackling workers with ‘noncompete agreements’
Labour can afford to be far more ambitious with its economic policies – voters are on board
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects