Ukraine`s junk credit rating was left unchanged by S&P Global Ratings, which said the eastern European nation`s new government has made progress toward accessing bailout funds, but it must fight ”widespread corruption” while the situation in the country`s war-torn easternmost regions remains uncertain, according to Bloomberg.
S&P on Friday left the nation`s long-term sovereign debt rated at B-, six levels below investment grade and on par with Iraq and Ghana, according to a report, Bloomberg wrote.
The nation`s outlook is stable as the ratings company predict the government will maintain access to financing from the International Monetary Fund.
Fitch Ratings and Moody`s Investor Service rate Ukraine at the same level.
Ukraine, which restructured $15 billion of state debt last year and has been fighting Russia-backed separatists for more than two years, is emerging from a political crisis that`s delayed disbursements from its $17.5 billion IMF bailout. Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman`s cabinet, which took over in April, has pledged to resume cooperation with the Washington-based lender to underpin recovery from a recession and boost reserves. The IMF`s board will decide in July on disbursement of $1.7 billion, paving the way for at least another $1.7 billion in other aid.
”We believe broader reforms will continue, albeit with setbacks, and that Ukraine`s western partners will remain engaged,” S&P analysts led by Ravi Bhatia in London said in a statement. ”We remain cautious on the fiscal outlook, owing to the sizable risks that still remain, including the conflict in the East, and large contingent liabilities, included two court cases relating to a US$3 billion Eurobond issued to Russia.”
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