Moody’s lowers India's rating outlook to 'negative' from 'stable' on economic concern

08 Nov 2019 Evaluate

Expressing caution over India’s economic growth, international rating agency Moody’s Investors Service in its latest report has changed the outlook on India's rating to 'negative' from 'stable'. It said that there was increasing risks that economic growth will remain materially lower than the past, citing a growing debt burden and the government’s struggle to narrow the budget deficit. It affirmed the nation’s foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer ratings at Baa2, the second-lowest investment grade score.

The rating agency’s decision to change the outlook to negative reflects increasing risks that economic growth will remain materially lower than in the past, partly reflecting lower government and policy effectiveness at addressing long-standing economic and institutional weaknesses than Moody's had previously estimated, leading to a gradual rise in the debt burden from already high levels.

Moody’s also said while government measures to support the economy should help to reduce the depth and duration of India's growth slowdown, prolonged financial stress among rural households, weak job creation, and, more recently, a credit crunch among non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs), have increased the probability of a more entrenched slowdown. It further said the prospects of further reforms that would support business investment and growth at high levels, and significantly broaden the narrow tax base, have diminished.

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