Moody's change outlook on Qatar to stable

Mubasher: Moody's Investors Service has affirmed the long-term issuer and foreign-currency senior unsecured debt ratings for Qatar at Aa3, changing the outlook on long-term issuer ratings to stable from negative.

The ratings agency said in a recent report that the key driver of the outlook change to stable is Moody's assessment that Qatar can withstand the economic, financial and diplomatic boycott by the three neighboring Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Egypt, or with possible further restrictions, for an extended period of time without a material deterioration of the sovereign's credit profile.

This assessment is in part based on evidence of broad resilience of Qatar's credit metrics to the economic and financial blockade over the past 13 months.

The rating affirmation at Aa3 takes into account a number of credit strengths embedded in Qatar's credit profile which remains supported by the large net asset position of Qatar's government, exceptionally high levels of per-capita income, very large hydrocarbon reserves and relatively low fiscal and external breakeven oil prices.