“For Ethiopia’s bond, there is a 30-day grace period, after which it would become a full contractual default if the amount is unpaid. Following this, in November 2023, Ethiopia’s government creditors, with the exception of China, agreed to a suspension of debt services. Subsequent to Ethiopia’s inability to fulfill a $33 million coupon payment, Fitch Ratings adjusted the status of Ethiopia’s sole international government bond to “default” from its previous rating of “near default” as of December 27, 2023. In early November 2023, Fitch Ratings, a prominent credit rating agency, declared a reduction in Ethiopia’s long-term foreign currency issuer default rating (IDR). Additionally, in October 2023, Moody’s, another credit rating agency, lowered Ethiopia’s foreign currency rating from ‘Caa2’ to ‘Caa3’.

Source: Ethiopian News January 05, 2024 14:47 UTC