Standard
Standard & Poor's (S&P) placed its long-term sovereign credit rating on the Republic of Finland onCreditWatch review with negative implications. Earlier this year, S&P confirmed Finland the highest possiblerating, AAA for long-term credit, and A-1+ for short-term credit.
As grounds for their decision to place Finland on CreditWatch, S&P expresses their concerns about the potentialadverse impact of deepening political, financial, and monetary problems within the European Economic and MonetaryUnion.
S&P concludes their review after the European summit on December 9th, 2011. S&P may decide to lower theirrating by one notch, to AA+, or affirm the rating at its current level if they deem the actions decided on at thesummit as sufficient.
The Finnish Government participates actively in finding immediate, sustainable solutions to internal issues inco-operation with other Member States in the European Economic Union. The best way to return confidence in the publicfinances of single euro area member states is now to recover trust in the euro area as a whole, and more specificallyin the sustainability of the public finances of its big member states.
In addition to the weakening policy coordination in the euro area, the credit rating agency is concerned about thepossibility that a prolonged financial crisis could complicate Finnish banks' access to funding and increase the riskof the need for government interventions, causing contingent liabilities to materialize. The comparatively goodcondition of the Finnish banking sector does not, however, call for that kind of action for the time being.
As a small and open economy Finland is highly exposed to international economic developments. Therefore, solutionson the European level that contribute to global economic recovery are essential. On the national level, the Governmenthas in its programme committed to ensure in its spending limits decisions that the Finnish State maintains its currentcredit rating.
Inquiries: Director General, Mr Jukka Pekkarinen, tel. 358 9 160 33191