…what percentage of investors who invest in Bim are driven by ratings? what rates can we raise money at if we need to? The fact is that Jamaica with a much lower rating has been raising money globally at comparable rates to Barbados, actually lower in some cases.
My general point is that all the people who have been opining have not bothered to check or try to get info on the trading in currently outstanding Barbados government bonds graded internationally. has there been any selling off, have the yields gone up. How can we claim to be serious about these issues?…
Of concern to BU and others we know is the lack of financial Reporters employed by traditional media. One only had to observe the Central Bank of Barbados press conference yesterday. The traditional media whether it wants to accept the responsibility is an opinion shaper for many Barbadians.
A scan of media houses exposes that the financial page is managed from the side of an editor’s desk; perhaps with the exception of Geraldine Edwards at the Business Authority. The author (Ellis Chase) of the quote is correct. A responsible and knowledgeable media should be competent to report on the implications of the S&P downgrade and the role of credit ratings agencies in general. Although there is a political dimension to the downgrade the flipside to the discussion is equally important for those who would want the nuts and bolts of the downgrade. Further, many Barbadians are being robbed of an informed debate on the issue of the downgrade.
Local media houses have a responsibility to enrich its human resource to allow for the professional delivery of ALL news.
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.