Khalil on S&P and Fitch Ratings: We Have Serious Work Ahead

Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil on Saturday assured that the Lebanese government takes seriously the ratings of Standard & Poor's and Fitch and will pursue serious and structural reforms, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Saturday.

“We take these two ratings seriously and confirm our decision to pursue serious and structural reforms. We have the capacity to advance,” said Khalil in the wake of reports issued late on Friday by the international rating agencies.

“We have committed to further reforms in the 2020 budget and we have serious work to address the gaps,” he added.

Fitch Ratings downgraded Lebanon's long-term foreign currency issuer default rating to CCC from B- Friday, while Standard & Poor's Global Ratings affirmed its long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings for Beirut at B-/B, saying the country's outlook remains negative.

The international rating agency's downgrade for Lebanon is another blow to the struggling economy of Lebanon that is suffering from one of the world's highest debt ratios, high unemployment and little growth.