JAKARTA, March 4 (Reuters) – Multiple Indonesian local media reported on Wednesday that Fitch Ratings has downgraded Indonesia’s sovereign credit rating outlook to negative from stable.
A representative of Fitch’s media team reached by Reuters declined to comment.
Some media, including one of Indonesia’s biggest news websites Detik.com, reported the outlook cut citing a draft statement by Fitch, while others, including the country’s largest media group Kompas, published their reports citing an official Fitch statement.
Indonesia’s coordinating ministry for economic affairs was seeking information regarding the media reports about a Fitch outlook cut, a spokesperson said.
The finance ministry and central bank did not immediately respond to requests for confirmation
Detik.com said that Fitch maintained Indonesia’s rating at BBB, but revised the outlook due to increased policy uncertainty and concern over consistency and credibility of policy mix amid centralised policymaking.
Rating agency Moody’s last month cut its outlook for Indonesia to negative, citing reduced predictability in policymaking.
The Moody’s outlook cut rattled Indonesia’s financial markets, coming after index provider MSCI in January flagged transparency issues in the stock market that triggered a $120 billion rout.
Fitch analysts were in Jakarta last week to meet with several top Indonesian officials. Ahead of the meeting, a senior finance ministry official has expressed confidence that Fitch would see that Indonesia’s economic fundamentals were solid.
Investors have cooled on the country as they grow increasingly concerned about policy uncertainty in the $1.4 trillion G20 economy, including a widening fiscal deficit and central bank independence.
(Reporting by Gayatri Suroyo, Ananda Teresia, Stefanno Sulaiman in Jakarta and Rae Wee in Singapore; Editing by Martin Petty)
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