Fitch Ratings: Recalibration of Sri Lanka National Rating Scale

Fitch Ratings said on Tuesday that it will recalibrate the Sri Lankan National Rating scale to reflect changes in the relative creditworthiness among Sri Lankan issuers following the downgrade of the country's sovereign rating to 'B' from 'B+' on  December 3, 2018. 

The recalibration will result in rating actions for some issuers with Sri Lankan national ratings. “We anticipate a reduction in the number of 'AAA(lka)' rated issuers after the recalibration exercise is finalised, expected by end-February 2019, as a result of the sovereign downgrade and the resultant changes to the relative ranking of credits in the country,” Fitch said in a media release.

National scale ratings are a risk ranking of issuers in a particular market designed to help local investors differentiate risk. Sri Lanka's national scale ratings are denoted by the unique identifier '(lka)'. Fitch said it adds this identifier to reflect the unique nature of the Sri Lankan national scale. National scales are not comparable with Fitch's international ratings scales or with other countries' national rating scales. - ENDS -