Russia rating nears ‘junk’ status credit rating

Russia’s credit rating looks set to tumble into ‘junk’ for the first time in more than a decade, a move that would exclude its bonds from a couple of high-profile indices and may set off another wave of capital outflows.

The Fitch agency cut its rating on Russia to ‘BBB minus’ from ‘BBB’ on Friday, citing a significant deterioration in the country’s economic outlook, due to the slump in oil prices and falling value of the rouble.

That is still investment grade, the category that implies low default risk, but only one notch away from so-called ‘junk’, the grade Russia rose out of in 2004.