Moody's: "Korea's Sovereign Credit Rating Impact from COVID-19 is Limited"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Sehee] The international credit rating agency Moody's has expressed the opinion that the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) on South Korea is smaller compared to other countries and that its effect on the national credit rating will also be limited.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Finance on the 25th, Jin Fang, Head of Moody's Asia-Pacific Sovereign Ratings, and Alastair Wilson, Global Head of Moody's Sovereign Ratings, stated this during the 2020 annual consultation with Moody's held via conference call on the 24th.

Moody's noted that "a decline in growth rates and an increase in national debt are widely observed worldwide," but forecasted that South Korea would experience relatively minor impacts from COVID-19 and on its sovereign credit rating.

In response, Hong Nam-ki, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, explained, "The Korean government is responding to the COVID-19 crisis based on past crisis management experience, with principles of proactive and large-scale measures, an active fiscal role, and detailed customized policies."

Deputy Prime Minister Hong said, "If the domestic spread of COVID-19 is contained early, domestic demand is expected to recover quickly; however, difficulties in the external sector are anticipated for some time due to the global economic downturn," adding, "We will make every effort to achieve economic recovery."

He also announced plans to form an inter-ministerial task force (TF) to prepare for post-COVID-19 industrial structural changes and to explore ways to foster new industries.

Meanwhile, credit rating evaluation results are usually announced 2 to 3 months after the annual consultation, and Moody's is expected to release the results around June.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.