BOFIT Viikkokatsaus / BOFIT Weekly Review 2015/03
Standard & Poor’s lowered its rating of Russian sovereigns to its bottom investment-grade category last April as the Ukraine crisis flared. The final big-three ratings agency, Moody’s, continues to hold its rating of Russian sovereigns one notch above its lowest investment grade.
The outlooks of all three ratings agencies were negative. Any further lowering from Fitch or Standard & Poor’s would push Russian borrowing down into the realm of “speculative grade.” Many institutional investors have rules barring them from holding speculative-grade bonds, which are considered so risky that they are only recommended for well-informed investors capable of absorbing substantial losses.