RBI calls on credit rating agencies to gather views on economy

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 11 : Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das on Thursday held a meeting with chiefs of credit rating agencies to discuss the macroeconomic situation and outlook on various sectors of the economy.
The meeting, through video conference, was attended by deputy governors and other senior officers of the central bank.
It came a day after Standard and Poor's affirmed its rating on India's long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit at the lowest investment-grade level but retained a stable outlook on the economy. India's long-term rating was affirmed at BBB-minus with a stable outlook while the short-term rating was held at A3.
On June 1, Moody's had downgraded the government's foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer ratings to Baa3 from Baa2. It said the coronavirus outbreak has amplified existing vulnerabilities in India's credit quality.
The RBI officials gathered assessment of credit rating agencies on macroeconomic situation and outlook on various sectors of the economy, including the financial sector.
They also listened to the perspectives on the overall financial health of the entities rated by credit rating agencies, the RBI said in a statement.
Officials also discussed major factors that affect credit ratings in the current context besides ways to further strengthen the rating processes and engagement with key stakeholders.