Business Maverick: Debt, State Firms Are Risks to South Africa Rating, Moody’s Says

Ratings company Moody’s sees South Africa’s debt burden reaching 65 percent of gross domestic product by fiscal 2023, more any forecast the National Treasury gave for each of the next seven years in the February budget, Moody’s said in an emailed credit opinion Tuesday.

The rand gained as much as 0.6 percent against the dollar after Moody’s published the credit opinion, to trade at 14.0742, its best level on a closing basis since Feb. 27. The currency was 0.2 percent stronger at 14.1270 per dollar by 3:10 p.m. in Johannesburg. The deepest power cuts in more than a decade by state-owned company Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. are hurting efforts by the continent’s most-industrialized economy to recover from last year’s recession. The cash-strapped utility, whose debt amounts to 8 percent of GDP, remains the main source of contingent liability risk as government bailouts and electricity tariff increases “may prove insufficient to address the company’s long-standing financial troubles,” Moody’s said.

Loans Loans Latest News, Loans Loans Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Business Maverick: South Africa Holds Key Rate as It Cuts GDP GrowthHigher power, food and fuel prices will likely crimp household spending and limit prospects for stronger economic growth, resulting in the South African Reserve Bank having to hold the nation’s key interest rate for the rest of the year.
Source: dailymaverick - 🏆 3. / 84 Read more »