S&P: No change for Chile

Standard & Poor's said the overall credit quality in Chile should remain relatively stable over the short term despite the extensive loss of life and damage to property and infrastructure following the recent massive earthquake. Chile has foreign-currency ratings of A+ and A-1 and local-currency ratings of AA and A-1+ with a stable outlook.

It's still too early to assess the overall impact this serious disaster will ultimately have on the nation's economy, S&P said.

The agency said it expects a significant hit to growth - and to the recovery already underway - in the first half of the year, extensive reconstruction efforts are likely to bolster economic activity thereafter.

The country has a low debt burden with a net general government debt of 3.2% of GDP in 2009, providing some room for increased spending on reconstruction efforts, S&P said.

© 2015 Prospect News.
All content on this website is protected by copyright law in the U.S. and elsewhere. For the use of the person downloading only.
Redistribution and copying are prohibited by law without written permission in advance from Prospect News.
Redistribution or copying includes e-mailing, printing multiple copies or any other form of reproduction.