BANGKOK, 11 May 2012 – The Public Debt Management Office has expressed its disagreement with the latest credit analysis report by a leading ratings agency.
The Public Debt Management Office (PDMO) Director General Chakkrit Parapuntakul commented that Fitch Ratings’ latest affirmation of Thailand’s long-term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings at BBB and A-, with stable outlooks, has not accurately mirrored the current status of the country.
In its latest report, the agency has also affirmed the short-term foreign currency at F3 and the country ceiling at BBB+ for Thailand.
According to Fitch’s Asia-Pacific sovereign ratings team, all ratings and outlooks reflect Thailand’s strong external financial position and signs of political stabilization following the peaceful election in 2011.
However, Fitch said that risks to the government’s fiscal transparency and policy management remain, while buoyant credit growth means the banking sector will need to be monitored.
In addition, the agency expects Thai economy to grow by 5.5 percent this year, following a flat growth last year, due to the devastation from the worst flood crisis in decades.
In any case, Mr. Chakkrit said that all the ratings from Fitch have been lower than those offered by other ratings agencies.
Therefore, the PDMO is working on paths to improvement that will help elevate Thailand’s credit ratings in the future.
