Noting weak external and fiscal positions and slowing economy, Fitch Ratings on Monday affirmed Pakistan’s long-term Foreign Currency issuer default rating at ‘B-negative’ with a stable outlook.
#US Credit Agency @FitchRatings gave "Pakistan's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) [a] ‘B-‘ with a Stable Outlook," in addition to projected economic growth of 2.8% this year. https://t.co/K8wL2CmkoU
— South Asia Center (@ACSouthAsia) January 13, 2020
These concerns were voiced by Adviser to the Prime Minister on Commerce, Textile, Industry & Production and Investment Abdul Razak Dawood at ‘Business-Way Forward’ where he said that though there is economic stabilisation in Pakistan the country has still not seen economic growth.
The New York-based agency — one of the three major global rating agencies — noted high debt-to-GDP ratio, economic growth rate of 2.8 per cent and fiscal deficit at the elevated 7.9pc level besides high inflation and interest payments and weaker revenue growth as key weaknesses.
This comes a month after Moody’s Investor Service – a leading global credit rating agency – upgraded Pakistan’s credit rating outlook to ‘stable’ from negative’ ahead of the launch of Eurobond and Sukuk worth around $2 billion in world markets.
Read more: International rating agency Moody’s moves Pakistan’s economy from negative to stable
It said the tighter macroeconomic policies were further slowing GDP growth, estimated at 2.8pc in FY20 from 3.3pc in FY19 and gradually recovery to 3.4pc by FY21. Inflation has also continued to rise sharply from the cost pass-through of the currency depreciation and increases in energy tariffs.
Fitch forecast inflation to average 11.3pc in FY20 against 6.8pc in FY19 and expected the SBP to keep the policy rate at the current peak of 13.25pc in the coming months, before modest cuts towards the end of FY20 as inflationary pressures begin to fade.
The policy rate has been an issue of contention between Pakistan’s leading analysts as some allege it is responsible for slowdown of industrialisation and growth while others note its necessity given the inflation rate and foreign investment it brought in.
Shud the TB rate be at 10% & have -ve real interest rate? Guess what effect that'll on FX reserves & inflation. Wud those expounding against so called 'hot money', suggest international investors be discriminated against when participating in any TB markets even in PKR?
— Javed Hassan (@javedhassan) December 8, 2019
Fitch appreciated the reduced external debt, flexible exchange rate and improved fiscal discipline but highlighted governance, security and structural reforms as critical risk areas. (The agency had downgraded Pakistan’s long-term debt rating to B-negative from B in December 2018).
The ‘B-negative’ rating reflects a challenging external position characterised by a high external financing requirement and low reserves, weak public finances including large fiscal deficits and a high government debt-to-GDP ratio, and weak governance indicators.
It said Pakistan was making progress towards strengthening external finances and taking positive steps on the fiscal front, but considerable risks remain. Still, external finances remain fragile with relatively low foreign-exchange reserves in the context of an elevated external debt repayment schedule and subdued export performance”, the Fitch said. Pakistan’s liquidity ratio is 111.4pc, much weaker than the historic ‘B’ median of 161.2pc.
Read more: Pakistani economists’ tug of war: is hot money helping our economy?
Fitch forecast a further narrowing of the current account deficit to 2.1pc of GDP in the year ending June 2020 (FY20) and 1.9pc in FY21, from 4.9pc in the last fiscal year. But it noted that import compression remained the predominant driver of the narrowing deficit, facilitated by a depreciation of the rupee against the dollar of around 30pc since December 2017 and tighter monetary conditions. Exports are forecast to grow modestly from a low base.
Fitch forecast gross liquid foreign-exchange reserves rising to around $11.5bn by FY20 end, $7.2bn at FY19 end. The SBP has also reduced its net forward position by over $3bn since June, contributing to a considerable improvement in its net foreign-exchange reserves, although these remain negative.
The rating agency said Pakistan’s access to external financing had improved after the approval of a $6bn, 39-month Extended Fund Facility (EFF) by the IMF board in July 2019. The IMF, it said, this had potentially unlocked about $38bn in financing from multilateral (including from the IMF) and bilateral sources over the programme period. It may also facilitate financing from offshore capital markets.
International Monetary Fund has said Pakistan's economic reforms program is on track and has started to bear fruit. Executive Board of the IMF made this observation following completion of its first review of Pakistan's economic performance under the Extended Fund Facility pic.twitter.com/wdNiP7naUM
— PTI (@PTIofficial) December 20, 2019
It said the IMF programme was on track with first review completed in December. “However, implementation risks remain high, particularly given the politically challenging nature of the authorities’ reform agenda”.
Given Pakistan is an import consumption country that has borrowed from the IMF 13 times in the last 30 years, meeting the institutions conditions and keeping the programme on track is commendable in itself.
Moreover, gross external financing needs are likely to remain high, in the mid-$20bn range, over the medium term due to considerable debt repayments and despite the smaller current account deficit. “Sustaining inflows to meet these financing needs could prove challenging over a longer horizon without stronger export growth and net FDI inflows”.
Pakistan has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘4’ for Creditors Rights as willingness and ability to service debt are relevant to the rating and a rating driver, as for all sovereigns
On the other hand, public finances are a key credit weakness and deteriorated further in FY19 prior to the approval of the IMF programme. The general government deficit slipped to 8.9pc of GDP in FY19, from 6.5pc in FY18, as revenues contracted, due in part to one-off factors, such as lower SBP dividends and delayed telecom licence renewals.
Also, general government debt rose to 84.8pc of GDP, well above the current ‘B’ median of 54pc, due to the currency depreciation, higher fiscal deficit, and build-up of liquidity buffers. Debt/revenue also jumped sharply to 667pc, compared with the historic ‘B’ median of 252pc.
Fitch expected a challenging future. It said the government was consolidating public finances, but progress would be challenging due to the relatively high reliance on revenues to achieve the planned adjustment. It described the FY20 revenue target as ambitious but hoped the efforts to broaden the tax base through its tax-filer documentation drive and removal of GST exemptions will contribute to stronger revenue growth.
Read more: Stabilisation will lead to growth: PTI’s failed economic promises so far?
Despite all this, it forecasts the fiscal deficit to at 7.9pc of GDP in FY20, based on a reversal of the previous year’s one-off factors and revenue-enhancing measures. This is slightly higher than the government’s expectations of 7.5pc due to Fitch’s more conservative revenue projections. The agency also expected the expenditure to rise, particularly as interest-servicing costs increase sharply on the back of higher interest rates.
Improvements to the business and security environment could further support the growth outlook. Domestic security has improved over the past couple of years, measured by a decline in terrorist incidents. Nevertheless, ongoing international perceptions of security risks and geopolitical tensions with neighbouring countries weigh on investor sentiment.
Political instability
According to Fitch, Pakistan has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Political Stability and Rights as World Bank Governance Indicators have the highest weight in the SRM and are therefore highly relevant to the rating and a key rating driver with a high weight. Domestic security risks and geopolitical tensions with neighbours also pose a risk to political stability.
Per capita income ($)
1999:
1. Pak: 618
2. India : 437
3. B’desh: 3972018:
1. India: 1,997
2. B’desh: 1,675
3. Pak: 1,350 (2019 due to devaluation)GDP growth rates
India: 7%
Bangladesh: 7%
Pakistan: 5.8% to 3%Political stability & continuity of policies makes difference
— Ahsan Iqbal (@betterpakistan) April 14, 2019
Pakistan has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘5’ for Rule of Law, Institutional and Regulatory Quality, and Control of Corruption as World Bank Governance Indicators have the highest weight in the SRM and are therefore highly relevant to the rating and a key rating driver with a high weight. Pakistan also scores low on the World Bank’s Doing Business Index, despite recent improvements.
The country has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘4’ for Human Rights and Political Freedoms as World Bank Governance Indicators have the highest weight in the SRM and are relevant to the rating and a rating driver.
Lastly, Pakistan has an ESG Relevance Score of ‘4’ for Creditors Rights as willingness and ability to service debt are relevant to the rating and a rating driver, as for all sovereigns.