Do Sovereign Ratings Reflect Growing Climate Risks?
Sovereign credit ratings are independent assessments of the creditworthiness of a country or sovereign entity. The Big Three credit rating companies—Moody’s Investors Service, S&P Global Ratings, and Fitch Ratings — are largely responsible for interpreting the level of investment risk associated with the debt of a particular country. However, a growing number of investors, academics, policymakers, and regulators question whether credit ratings are accounting for the impact of growing climate risks. If these risks materialize, they threaten to trigger climate-induced sovereign downgrades as early as 2030.
