S&P lowers Ireland rating to AA; outlook negative

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Jun 8, 2009, 6:12 a.m. EST
S&P lowers Ireland rating to AA; outlook negative
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Alert Email Print Share By William L. Watts

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Standard & Poor's Ratings Service on Monday lowered Ireland's long-term sovereign credit rating to AA from AA+ and said the nation's credit outlook remained negative, citing the fiscal costs of supporting the nation's crippled banking system. The agency affirmed its A-1+ short-term rating. Costs will be "significantly higher than what we had expected" when the rating was previously lowered in March, said Standard & Poor's credit analyst David Beers, in a news release. The rating could be lowered again if asset quality deteriorates at a faster-than-expected pace or there is a more pronounced downturn in economic growth, Beers said. A downgrade could also be triggered by a material shortening of the average maturity of the government's debt.