Rating agency warns Warsaw about downgrade

The rating agency Moody's on Friday maintained Poland's current credit rating but warned that a downgrade was still a distinct possibility. It justified this by pointing to additional spending announced by the national-conservative PiS government, including an increase in child benefit. Must the PiS change its course?

Open/close all quotes
Rzeczpospolita (PL) /

Stop putting credibility on the line

Poland can breathe a sigh of relief but the government must avoid putting the country's image at risk once again, the daily Rzeczpospolita urges:

“The maintenance of the rating is very good news, that will allow us to save billions of złoty that would otherwise be lost. Nevertheless a threat was made. It refers less to the current situation than to the government's plans. What the government should do, consequently, is to avoid making further expensive promises and create more trust in the dispute over the Constitutional Tribunal. Above all, however, it must improve Poland's image. Because in the eyes of the West the state is clearly moving in a dangerous direction.”

wPolityce.pl (PL) /

Ratings can be bought nowadays

The government shouldn't take too much notice of the rating agencies' move, the nationalist platform wPolityce counters:

“Every złoty that goes to families, children, pensioners and those who have been robbed by the banks is one złoty less for the cutthroats and sharks at the big companies and the currency exchange pushers who wreak havoc all over the world. Every billion that goes to the family programme is a billion less for those hustlers. The rating agencies have long since ceased to focus on a cool analysis of the economy and finances. They have become an object of desire for lobbyists and political interest groups. Nowadays you can buy and sell ratings. This is why their value is at the very least dubious.”