Fitch places Sri Lanka UCO after publication of final sovereign rating criteria

Fitch Ratings said yesterday it has placed Sri Lanka's Long-Term Local-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) and associated instruments Under Criteria Observation (UCO) following the conversion of the agency's Exposure Draft: Sovereign Rating Criteria to final criteria.

The UCO assignment indicates that ratings may change as a direct result of the final criteria. It does not indicate a change in the underlying credit profile, nor does it affect existing Outlooks.

“We will resolve the UCO status within six months. The outcomes will depend on Fitch's assessment of the appropriate notching based on the new criteria. Not all issuers on UCO will have a rating change upon resolution,” Fitch added.

A summary of the changes introduced by the new criteria is available at: Fitch Ratings Publishes Final Sovereign Rating Criteria (fitchratings.com/research/sovereigns/fitch-ratings-publishes-final-sovereign-rating-criteria-11-07-2022).