Fitch affirms India's rating at 'BBB-'; outlook negative due to Covid surge

A resurgence in Covid-19 in the country has increased downside risks to growth

Rating agency Fitch Ratings has affirmed India’s long-term foreign-currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘BBB-’ with a negative outlook.
 
India’s rating balances a still strong medium-term growth outlook and external resilience from solid foreign reserve buffers, against high public debt, a weak financial sector, and some lagging structural factors, Fitch said.
 
The negative outlook reflects lingering uncertainty around the debt trajectory, following the sharp deterioration in India’s public finance metrics because of the pandemic from a previous position of limited fiscal headroom, it added.
 
Wider fiscal deficits, and government plans for only a gradual narrowing of the