New Delhi: A leading ratings agency has warned Russia is likely to soon default on its debts, as it downgraded the country’s bonds further into “junk” territory, BBC reported.
Fitch Ratings slashed its assessment of Russia to almost the bottom of its scale, just days after downgrading it from investment status.
If Russia did fail to make payments on its debt it raises the possibility of the first major default on the country’s sovereign bonds since the wake of the 1917 Bolshevik revolution, BBC reported.
It is the latest blow to the country’s creditworthiness in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine.
This week, Moscow said its bond payments may be affected by sanctions.
“The further ratcheting up of sanctions, and proposals that could limit trade in energy, increase the probability of a policy response by Russia that includes at least selective non-payment of its sovereign debt obligations,” Fitch said, BBC reported.
The announcement from Fitch came after the US and UK said they will ban Russian oil, as they step up the economic response to the invasion of Ukraine.
On Sunday, Moscow told investors that it would continue to service its sovereign debt.
However, it warned that international sanctions imposed on its energy industry could limit its ability and willingness to meet its obligations.
“The actual possibility of making such payments to non-residents will depend on the limiting measures introduced by foreign states in relation to the Russian Federation,” the finance ministry said in a statement.
In recent days, rival ratings agencies Moody’s Investors Service and S&P Global Ratings have also slashed their assessments of Russian sovereign debt.
(IANS)
