Caribbean Creditworthiness Slipped Back In 2004

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

04 January 2005

According to the latest sovereign credit survey by Institutional Investor magazine, a number of Caribbean nations slipped down the creditworthiness league table during 2004.

Whilst Barbados recorded a marginal increase in its credit rating by 0.4% to 59.9 (out of a maximum score of 100) between March and November 2004, the slow pace of the improved score meant that the jurisdiction slipped down the overall ranking of 173 nations to 48th from 45th.

Similarly, the Bahamas’ credit score – second only to Chile in the creditworthiness of Latin American countries – also fell back during the same six month period, falling 2.3% to rest on a score of 63.3. This meant a fall in the league table to 42nd from 34th.

Other Caribbean nations, such as Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago remained more or less stationary in terms of their creditworthiness.

However, Grenada, whose economy perhaps suffered the most at the hands of Hurricane Ivan last year, put in the worst performance among the Caribbean countries analysed, as its credit score declined by 5.2% to 37.6 and its league position fell to 79th overall from 67th.

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