Jakarta –
Minister of Finance Israel, Bezalel Smotrich criticized the decision of the rating agency Moody’s to downgrade Israel’s debt rating. Moody’s downgraded Israel’s debt rating last Friday and warned that the war in Gaza could have a negative impact on the economy.
Quoted from AP, Tuesday (13/2/2024), this decision is the first time Moody’s has lowered Israel’s credit rating. This debt rating is used by investors to measure the risk of investing in an entity or government.
Moody’s downgraded Israel from A1 to A2 and said the country’s economic outlook was negative. According to Moody’s, the A2 rating remains relatively low risk.
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Bezalel Smotrich angrily rejected the decision. The announcement was seen as reflecting a lack of confidence in Israel’s security and strength.
“Reflecting a lack of confidence in Israel’s security and national strength, and also a lack of confidence in the correctness of Israel’s path in fighting its enemies,” he said.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel’s economy was strong. “The drop in ratings is entirely due to the fact that we are at war.”
He believed that after the war ended his ranking would rise again. Meanwhile, Israeli officials worry that a downgrade by Moody’s could cause other major institutions to downgrade Israel as well.
An economics professor at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Michel Strawczynski, said this could impact Israel’s economy because it would make it difficult for the government to raise money by selling bonds.
“If the war is long it will definitely have an impact, but if it is not too long the impact will be much smaller,” he said.
(acd/ara)
2024-02-13 06:12:47
#Debt #Rating #Drops #Israeli #Finance #Minister #Angry
