Ratings, Debt, and Deficits: An Exploration - International Monetary Fund | IMF
Ratings, Debt, and Deficits: An Exploration - International Monetary Fund | IMF
Source: International Monetary Fund | IMF
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DW NOTE
The IMF is publishing research on the relationship between sovereign debt levels and credit ratings. Strange timing. The US is running an $1.8 trillion deficit in fiscal 2026 — 4% worse than last year — while the Fed just hiked rates to contain 5.44% producer price inflation. That combination doesn't improve debt service costs. If the IMF's conclusion is that ratings agencies are backward-looking, they might want to mention that fiscal arithmetic is not.